{"id":11760,"date":"2026-09-25T19:07:42","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/charles-tilburg\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T19:07:42","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:42","slug":"charles-tilburg","status":"publish","type":"candidate","link":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/charles-tilburg\/","title":{"rendered":"Charles Tilburg"},"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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My top priorities are affordability, education and conservation. I\u2019m committed to bipartisan problem solving and standing up for the people in our district by lowering costs for families and seniors, strengthening public schools and career pathways, and protecting Maine\u2019s natural resources through clean water and clean air.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Why are you running?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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A few months ago, my daughter challenged me at our dining room table to help build a better world for her generation. That moment stayed with me. Maine has treated my family well, and I feel a responsibility to give back and help keep this state the beautiful, independent place we all love. That sense of obligation, to my kids, their generation, and to Maine, is why I\u2019m running.<\/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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Maine is on the right track, with strong public schools, small class sizes and top national rankings in reading and student\u2011teacher ratios, even though we still have a ways to go on overall proficiency. But Maine is on the wrong track as it remains one of the most expensive states for families and seniors, with energy and housing costs rising faster than wages.<\/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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Starting my first week in Augusta, I will meet with Republican lawmakers from southern Maine to build the bipartisan relationships needed to get things done. I will focus on practical work that lowers costs for families, strengthens schools and career pathways, cuts unnecessary bureaucracy, and builds consensus around ideas that appeal to both parties.<\/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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I would work to implement some key recommendations from Maine\u2019s Property Tax Task Force to ease costs for families and seniors. I\u2019d strengthen the Property Tax Fairness Credit so income tax credits can offset property taxes, and increase the homestead exemption to keep pace with inflation and provide broader relief for permanent residents.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":5085,"template":"","meta":{"voter_guide_candidate_first_name":"Charles","voter_guide_candidate_middle_name":"Edward","voter_guide_candidate_last_name":"Tilburg","voter_guide_candidate_suffix":"","voter_guide_candidate_race_id":11759,"voter_guide_candidate_age":55,"voter_guide_candidate_hometown":"","voter_guide_candidate_occupation":"Professor of oceanography","voter_guide_candidate_bio":"Father, husband, educator, engineer and scientist committed to bipartisan public service, environmental stewardship, and a bright future for the families and seniors of Buxton and Hollis.","voter_guide_candidate_education":"Bachelor's in aerospace engineering; master's in environmental engineering; doctorate in oceanography","voter_guide_candidate_years_in_municipality":"","voter_guide_candidate_headshot_url":"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/open?id=1hfk84H7xwk5L_muR-u1AKZM7r8Gn3l7F","voter_guide_candidate_date_filed":"","footnotes":""},"vg_party":[1073],"vg_residence_municipality":[],"class_list":["post-11760","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\/11760","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\/11760\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11761,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/11760\/revisions\/11761"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5085"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11760"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"vg_party","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_party?post=11760"},{"taxonomy":"vg_residence_municipality","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_residence_municipality?post=11760"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}