{"id":11713,"date":"2026-09-25T19:07:41","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/william-st-michel\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T19:07:41","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:41","slug":"william-st-michel","status":"publish","type":"candidate","link":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/william-st-michel\/","title":{"rendered":"William St. Michel"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Previous Offices Held<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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None<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Top Three Priorities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Taxes — Taxes are stifling our economy, and our personal security. Between state taxes and local taxes people are forced to make budgetary cuts and deplete savings.\nEnergy costs – We have the fifth-highest electricity costs in the country. Our rates are at least 60% higher than the national average.\nRegulation – Our current regulatory environment is not business friendly.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Why are you running?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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I want to be a voice for the people of District 98 in Augusta. Too many people who love this state and its overwhelming natural beauty are forced to make tough decisions. Our children are looking elsewhere to achieve their goals and dreams, while others are forced to sell their homes, farms and property. If we work together we can stop that cycle.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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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
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We have an environmentally beautiful and diverse state. We have started the process of assisting and supporting people with career training. That has and will continue to have a positive impact on our state's economy.\nWe have not paid attention to retaining people though; taxes, energy costs, housing, health care and our regulatory environment have been mishandled or overlooked.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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As one of several dozen legislators in your chamber, how would you make a measurable difference for your constituents?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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We all need change, our current course is failing in almost every category. I feel that the best way for any legislator to make a measurable difference is by representing their constituents' concerns. I am sure time management is a constant struggle for legislators. I believe to make a measurable difference is not necessarily just about the outcomes but the two-way communication. Actually making government for the people by the people.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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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
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Job one is taxes. We cannot improve our economy until taxes are in check. Government should be run like a business, cost effectively providing the services that are needed. A proposal would be a complete review of all programs for efficiency, cost effective operation and need, while simultaneously looking at regulations that are hindering economic growth.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":1953,"template":"","meta":{"voter_guide_candidate_first_name":"William","voter_guide_candidate_middle_name":"Joseph","voter_guide_candidate_last_name":"St. Michel","voter_guide_candidate_suffix":"No answer","voter_guide_candidate_race_id":11712,"voter_guide_candidate_age":71,"voter_guide_candidate_hometown":"","voter_guide_candidate_occupation":"Executive director of Maine Fire Chiefs' Association","voter_guide_candidate_bio":"Fire chief for 25 years, Maine Chief of the Year in 2004, past president Maine Fire Chiefs and New England Fire Chiefs, plumbing company owner for 15 years.","voter_guide_candidate_education":"Freeport High, class of '73, some work on associates in fire science.","voter_guide_candidate_years_in_municipality":"","voter_guide_candidate_headshot_url":"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/open?id=1gz-pGxOP8Xlb7QP-jEdprzobz_rBni10","voter_guide_candidate_date_filed":"","footnotes":""},"vg_party":[564],"vg_residence_municipality":[],"class_list":["post-11713","candidate","type-candidate","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","vg_party-republican"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/11713","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\/11713\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11714,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/11713\/revisions\/11714"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1953"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11713"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"vg_party","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_party?post=11713"},{"taxonomy":"vg_residence_municipality","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_residence_municipality?post=11713"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}