Sen. Jim Hamper of Oxford, a Republican, and Democrat Joseph (Joe) Chisari of Fryeburg are competing for the Maine Senate District 19 seat in the Nov. 8 election. Senate District 19 covers Bridgton, Brownfield, Denmark, Fryeburg, Harrison, Hiram, Naples, Norway, Otisfield, Oxford, Paris, Porter, and Sebago.

Hamper, 61, is a carpenter employed by Bartow Construction Inc., based in Otisfield. He has been married for 40 years to Lynn Hamper, and he has two adult children and four grandchildren. He served for eight years in the House of Representatives and is finishing his fourth year in the Senate.

Chisari, 46, is married with two sons. He is a doctor at Fryeburg Chiropractic and Wellness, which he owns and operates. He has served as a member of the Fryeburg Budget Committee and Planning Board.

For Hamper, a significant problem facing the Legislature is bipartisanship. As a legislator, he would “remain open for discussion with colleagues from the other side of the aisle.” With his dozen years of experience in state government, he said he’s learned “you have to do that.”

A significant problem facing the state of Maine, he said, is the economy. His goal as a legislator would be to continue to lower tax rates, which he said will attract more businesses to the region. This issue is not only of importance to Mainers across the state, but is one of the most important issues for his constituents in Western Maine, Hamper said.

Hamper is voting for Donald Trump in the presidential election.

As for the state ballot, he said he plans to vote against all of the bond measures, except question 6, which would authorize $100 million in bonds for transportation projects.

The money will help fund the department’s biennial work plan, and “we all know we need our roads re-worked,” Hamper said.

Hamper said he opposes question 1, to legalize marijuana, because “I don’t think it’s a good decision societally.”

Question 2, to tax income greater than $200,000 at 3 percent to provide greater funding for K-12 education “goes against what I’ve been working for,” Hamper said. Hamper said he has worked for the past two legislative sessions to lower taxes.

He opposes Question 3, which would require people who are not licensed firearm dealers to complete background checks before completing a gun sale or transfer. Hamper opposes the measure because “I don’t want to consult a lawyer before I loan a firearm,” he said.

He is against raising the minimum wage to $12 per hour – question 4 – because it’s “a job killer for entry-level positions.”

Finally, he opposes question 5, Rank-Choice Voting, because it runs contrary to the state’s constitution, he said, which requires that officials be elected by a plurality of votes.

Hamper said he does not support taking action against Gov. Paul LePage following the voicemail he left Rep. Drew Gattine, D-Westbrook, in August. Hamper said the constitution does not allow the Senate to censure or impeach the Governor, because the legislature comprises a separate branch of government from the executive branch (which includes the Governor).

When asked what the Legislature can do to address opiate addiction in Maine, Hamper said he will wait to see how the issue is addressed in the governor’s biennial budget before making a decision.

“My concern is the state government is throwing money at the problem,” he said, and he wants to make sure the money is spent in the right ways.

When asked what is the most important problem facing the Legislature, Chisari said “as a representative, I’m here to listen to everyone’s problems in my district, and I don’t feel one problem is greater than another.”

Chisari said as a businesses owner his strength is coming up with solutions.

An issue of importance to his constituents, Chisari said, is fair wages and equal opportunity for economic development.

Because Chisari was not a member of the Legislature during the voicemail uproar, he said would not support taking action against Gov. Paul LePage.

“There’s a lot of willingness by (my) party to jump on the bandwagon. I’m not ready to do that until I sit and talk with (Gov. LePage),” he said.

Chisari said he was “willing to take a closer look at things (LePage) has done that have benefitted the state, to lift up the good things and have a dialogue.”

In response to high-levels of opiate addiction in the state, Chisari said the insurance and drug industries that prescribe and provide prescription opiates should be held accountable.

“There’s an issue of accountability because of the economic and emotional burden this has placed on people,” Chisari said.

Chisari is voting no against four of the six ballot questions, except Question 6 and Question 3.

Question 3, which requires background checks for gun sales made by an unlicensed dealer, makes an exception for when the parties are hunting or sport-shooting and in transfers between family members.

He said the exception for transfer between family members is “a good exception” for background checks, because it would still allow families to gift guns at the holidays.

Chisari said although he does support education and “really believe teachers aren’t paid enough,” he is not in favor of question 2, which would levy a 3 percent income tax on income $200,000 or greater.

“I would hope people making that kind of money per year would recognize how blessed they are and give according to their ability,” he said.

Chisari said he would vote against question 4, to raise the minimum wage to $12/hour by 2020 because it “would overburden businesses.” He said he would support raising the minimum wage, but that $12 would be too costly for small business.

Chisari is also against question 1, to legalize marijuana, and Question 5, rank choice voting.

“You make a choice and stand by it,” Chisari said in regards to his opposition to the initiative to allow voters to rank candidates for office in order of preference.

When asked who he would support as a presidential candidate, he said the question was “between me and the ballot box.”

Sen. Jim Hamper

Joseph Chisari