LEEDS — With Republican Jeff Timberlake eyeing a state Senate seat this year, the contest to replace him in the state House is heating up.
Democrat John Nutting of Leeds, who has served in the House and Senate in the past, hopes to claim the open 75th District seat representing Turner, Leeds and part of Livermore.
Nutting said in a prepared statement that residents who “appreciate my past work, and worry about the bitter partisan climate taking hold in Augusta” asked him to enter the race.
A former dairy farmer with a reputation as a moderate, Nutting said “people want a lean government that is also compassionate. I’m committed to both.”
Three Republicans are also seeking to succeed Timberlake: John Pape of Turner, Angelo Terreri of Turner and Joshua Morris of North Turner. If there is a primary, it will be held June 12.
Timberlake is taking aim at the state Senate seat that’s been held by Republican Garrett Mason of Lisbon. Mason is running for governor.
Nutting, 68, said that as a longtime small business owner, he knows how difficult it is to make ends meet in rural Maine, including trying to cope with property taxes.
“It frustrates me to watch Augusta steadily cut revenue-sharing, while spending on nonessential, middle management positions and political appointees climbs,” he said. He knows where to trim the state budget to provide relief, he said.
Nutting, who graduated from the University of Maine, put in six years as a medic instructor for the U.S. Army Reserves before operating a breeding stock dairy farm with his wife, Sandy, from 1972 to 2014. They have two sons and two grandchildren.
Nutting served in the House of Representatives from 1986 to 1992. With the exception of a two-year break in the middle, he served in the Senate from 1996 until 2010, when he lost a re-election bid to Mason. Nutting ran unsuccessfully for a U.S. House seat in 2002.
The general election is Nov. 12.
John Nutting (Submitted photo)
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