{"id":12034,"date":"2026-09-25T19:07:44","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/kristan-watson\/"},"modified":"2026-09-28T13:57:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T13:57:13","slug":"kristan-watson","status":"publish","type":"candidate","link":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/kristan-watson\/","title":{"rendered":"Kristan Watson"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Previous Offices Held<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Currently serving first three-year term on Regional School Unit 21 Board of Directors, elected in 2024. Unsuccessfully sought Maine House District 140 seat in 2022, serving as a \u201cpaper candidate\u201d to ensure a Democrat was on the ballot.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Top Three Priorities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Reestablish the fundamental purpose of government: to represent and serve the people; restore our system of checks and balances; and confront the long-standing policy trends that have led to the current unaffordability crisis, ensuring policy works for everyday folks, not just the wealthy and well-connected.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Why are you running?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Ordinary people deserve a government that listens and responds, not one that creates barriers in our personal and professional lives. I’m running to bring practical experience, independent thinking and community-rooted leadership to Augusta, ensuring that government works for the people who continue to be the backbone of our communities.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\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 when we invest in people and communities: expanding childcare and healthcare access, supporting public schools and universal meals, protecting reproductive freedom, helping seniors and veterans, preserving farms and natural resources, and growing clean-energy and skilled-trades jobs. But good policy must do more than look good on paper \u2014 it should make life more affordable, secure and navigable for everyday Mainers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\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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I’ll be accessible, responsive and persistent, with a focus on the issues hitting families hardest, including housing, healthcare and the needs of rural communities. I’m willing to ask hard questions, challenge assumptions and work across party lines to solve problems. And I’ll measure success by whether the policies enacted actually make people’s lives better.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\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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When wealth determines election outcomes, political power is wielded at the expense of working people, veterans, children and retirees. Decades of policies favoring wealth over labor contribute to an economy where costs outpace wages and wealth concentrates at the top. I’d work to curb big-money influence in Maine politics and support efforts to overturn Citizens United, helping to restore checks and balances and advance policies that support working people and communities.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":7245,"template":"","meta":{"voter_guide_candidate_first_name":"Kristan","voter_guide_candidate_middle_name":"Lee","voter_guide_candidate_last_name":"Watson","voter_guide_candidate_suffix":"","voter_guide_candidate_race_id":12033,"voter_guide_candidate_age":46,"voter_guide_candidate_hometown":"","voter_guide_candidate_occupation":"Small-business owner","voter_guide_candidate_bio":"RSU 21 School Board member, small-business owner for 26 years and longtime community volunteer with deep Maine roots. Experience in public education, labor, budgeting and property management.","voter_guide_candidate_education":"Completed three years of college coursework at Russell Sage College and University of New England, with plans to complete bachelor\u2019s degree in the future; currently pursuing EPA Section 608 certification; holder of paralegal certificate from Southern Maine Community College.","voter_guide_candidate_years_in_municipality":"","voter_guide_candidate_headshot_url":"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/open?id=1WoYVk3Cg_Fk4gvuRL_8Tcz-SD6759sF2","voter_guide_candidate_date_filed":"","footnotes":""},"vg_party":[1073],"vg_residence_municipality":[],"class_list":["post-12034","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\/12034","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":3,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12034\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12830,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12034\/revisions\/12830"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7245"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12034"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"vg_party","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_party?post=12034"},{"taxonomy":"vg_residence_municipality","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_residence_municipality?post=12034"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}