Bath Democrats will caucus next week to choose a candidate to run for the House seat held by Sean Paulhus, who resigned last month after he was appointed Sagadahoc County register of probate by Gov. Janet Mills.
Former Bath City Councilor David Sinclair and author/musician Peter Macdonald Blachly announced their intentions to vie for the nomination as Democrats seek to retain the seat. Paulhus was in the middle of his third term. The winner of the Nov. 7 election will finish out his term, which ends in 2024.
The Democratic caucus will be at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Bath City Hall. Only registered Bath Democrats can participate. Sinclair and Blachly will speak to voters, who will then cast paper ballots. Check-in starts at 5:30 p.m. and officials said no one will be let in after the caucus begins.
Sinclair, a Bath lawyer, served two terms on the Bath City Council from 2008-2014. He ran for district attorney as a Democrat in 2014, losing to Republican Geoffrey Rushlau. He described himself as a lifelong Democrat whose practice focuses on “services for the underprivileged, with specialized training in homelessness prevention.”
Blachly, formerly know by his musical stage name Peter Alexander, is an author, musician and trauma recovery coach who has lived in Bath since 2011. He has been a nonprofit director and described himself as a “longtime advocate for social justice and environmental, economic, health care, educational and clean energy issues.”
Bath, which has a single state representative for the whole city, is a Democratic stronghold, with 3,283 registered Democrats, 1,560 registered Republicans and 2,307 unenrolled residents, according to 2022 state data.
Democrats currently have a 12-member majority over Republicans in the House.
Paulhus sponsored a bill to change Maine’s state flag to the old pine tree and star design and sponsored another that would allow the governor to distribute up to $400,000 to food banks, food pantries and soup kitchens to feed people in need during a state of emergency.
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