{"id":11641,"date":"2026-09-25T19:07:41","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/luke-jensen\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T19:07:41","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:41","slug":"luke-jensen","status":"publish","type":"candidate","link":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/luke-jensen\/","title":{"rendered":"Luke Jensen"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Previous Offices Held<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lewiston School Committee: Appointed in February 2017 Elected in 2017 and served until 2020 City Council Representative in 2021 Elected in 2025 and currently serving  Lewiston City Council: Elected in 2019 and served until 2021<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Top Three Priorities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My biggest priority is making Maine more affordable for working-class families and retirees. Whether it\u2019s grocery bills, childcare expenses, healthcare costs, or affordable housing, we\u2019re all feeling the pain from inflation and costs that keep rising.\n\nMy next priority is to address much-needed property tax reform. Lewiston residents are being squeezed, and I\u2019m focused on fighting for us.\n\nI\u2019ll also work on the necessary legislative changes that we know will reduce violent crime in our city.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Why are you running?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m running because Lewiston residents deserve better than what we\u2019re getting from our state government. Our tax system puts too much of a burden on local property taxpayers, our schools are dangerously underfunded by the state, and wealthy communities push their problems onto Lewiston and then restrict our ability to handle the issues that arise. This isn\u2019t acceptable and we deserve better. I\u2019m running to fight for my community.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">What is one way Maine is on the right track? What is one way the state is on the wrong track?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maine is on the right track in the sense that Mainers are just as hardworking as we always have been. Unfortunately, Maine is on the wrong track in many ways. Seniors on fixed incomes deal with rising expenses that don\u2019t seem to stop rising. Young people are unable to save money in order to build a future for themselves. Families are pinching pennies just to afford basic needs like groceries and childcare. This is unsustainable and Mainers deserve better than the way things are right now.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">As one of several dozen legislators in your chamber, how would you make a measurable difference for your constituents?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Many of the issues that affect Lewiston also affect most of rural Maine, and I see plenty of opportunities for coalition-building that can address issues like property tax reform, improving our schools, and making Maine more affordable. I\u2019m dedicated to taking power from coastal elites (of both parties) and giving it to regular, working-class people in Lewiston. I believe in common sense and won\u2019t hesitate to challenge my party\u2019s leaders if they aren\u2019t acting in Lewiston\u2019s best interests.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Surveys show the economy is the top concern of voters. What is a specific proposal addressing Maine voters\u2019 economic anxieties that you\u2019d work to make law?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One specific proposal of mine is to reform property taxes by moving to a statewide property tax system to fund things like public education, homelessness and revenue sharing for communities dealing with violent crime. If Maine moved to a statewide property tax, Lewiston residents would end up paying less overall than we do now. Currently, Lewiston pays high taxes so that wealthier communities get to pay less than what\u2019s fair. Lewiston residents are demanding change, and I will fight for them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":5059,"template":"","meta":{"voter_guide_candidate_first_name":"Luke","voter_guide_candidate_middle_name":"Dylan","voter_guide_candidate_last_name":"Jensen","voter_guide_candidate_suffix":"","voter_guide_candidate_race_id":11578,"voter_guide_candidate_age":35,"voter_guide_candidate_hometown":"","voter_guide_candidate_occupation":"Elementary educator","voter_guide_candidate_bio":"I am a public school educator who has spent nearly two decades volunteering and serving in the Lewiston community. I was born in Lewiston and raised in the McMahon School neighborhood.","voter_guide_candidate_education":"Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from Lynchburg College (2013)","voter_guide_candidate_years_in_municipality":"","voter_guide_candidate_headshot_url":"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/open?id=14g5vsNV9RVI-x5eURr2EtK8aO9URouV2","voter_guide_candidate_date_filed":"","footnotes":""},"vg_party":[1073],"vg_residence_municipality":[],"class_list":["post-11641","candidate","type-candidate","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","vg_party-democratic"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/11641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/candidate"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/11641\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11642,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/11641\/revisions\/11642"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5059"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"vg_party","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_party?post=11641"},{"taxonomy":"vg_residence_municipality","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_residence_municipality?post=11641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}