Lewiston, Maine’s second-largest city with about 36,000 residents, has struggled to recover from a slow economic decline. The closures of several industrial mills, coupled with a steady influx of immigrants, has created a struggling community where poverty, unemployment and public assistance rates are high.
Lewiston Mayor Robert Macdonald proposed an online registry for welfare recipients, an idea that was reviled by some, intrigued others and drew national attention.
Ben Chin, a Democratic candidate for mayor in Lewiston, hands campaign information to Habibo Ibrahim outside the apartment building where she lives. At center is Ibrahim's daughter, Ubah Aliyow. Chin advocates trying to rid the city of landlords who own multiple large apartment buildings with little oversight.
Ben Chin has been canvassing Lewiston and raising a record amount of money but knows the incumbent has an edge. “Any advantage I have is pushing the envelope and offering voters something different,” he says.
Luke Jensen, who ran unsuccessfully as a Republican in a state House race last year, has advocated for gay rights and the legalization of marijuana. “I want people to feel like Lewiston is not a dying city,” he says.
Luke Jensen, a Lewiston native, is one of two Republican candidates challenging incumbent Republican Robert Macdonald for mayor in November's election. Behind Jensen is the smokestack from the boiler house of Mill No. 6.
Steve Morgan, a real estate agent and Republican candidate for mayor, speaks with potential voters while walking along the Auburn Riverwalk. Morgan is a former city council president and has lived in the community for 32 years.
Republican Steve Morgan, a former City Council president, could contend as a middle-ground candidate. “The best way to improve things for taxpayers here is to bring in business and help drive taxes down,” he says.
Lewiston's Kennedy Park at dusk.
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