ROCKLAND, Maine — The Democratic candidate for a local Maine House seat said there should be a formal investigation into the residency of her opponent, a Republican who acknowledges he lives in a neighboring district.
Elizabeth Dickerson of Rockland responded Wednesday to a request for a comment on the acknowledgement by Republican Gordon Mank Jr. that he has lived at the Hospitality House in Rockport since 1999, including during the time that he circulated and filed nomination papers for the Maine House District 47 seat that represents Rockland and part of Owls Head.
Mank and his wife have operated the homeless shelter for 13 years.
“I’m not sure why there is no formal investigation,” Dickerson said. “I find that troubling.”
She said it would be wrong if she found a house in Union and moved her family but continued to try to campaign for a Rockland/Owls Head seat.
“Why haven’t we heard from our Constitutional officers?” Dickerson asked.
The Maine Constitution states: “No person may be a candidate for election as a member of the House of Representatives unless, at the time of the nomination for placement on a primary, general or special election ballot, that person is a resident in the district which the candidate seeks to represent.”
State law defines residency as the residence of a person where “the person has established a fixed and principal home to which the person, whenever temporarily absent, intends to return.”
Megan Sanborn, the communications director for the Maine secretary of state’s office, said Tuesday that the secretary of state had no authority to act since the deadline for filing a challenge to Manks’ nomination papers was five business days after they were filed, which would have been in the spring.
“They’re not doing their job,” Dickerson said of both the attorney general and secretary of state.
A telephone message was left Wednesday afternoon with Brenda Kielty, spokeswoman for the attorney general’s office. Kielty said later in the afternoon that she has referred the question to people in the department.
Dickerson said she has been ignoring the issue of Mank’s residency to focus on her campaign and the issues affecting citizens in House District 47.
Mank declined an interview with The Courier-Gazette newspaper in Rockland during the primary, a race he won by two votes over fellow Republican and former Rockland Mayor James Raye.
Mank told the Bangor Daily News on Monday evening he may not participate in any debates if ones are scheduled. He said he was fed up with questions about his residency and would not answer any more queries about the matter.
He said he would not drop out of the race.
The Maine Republican Party issued a statement on the matter Wednesday afternoon.
“Here are the facts. Gordon Mank has owned 81 Grace Street in Rockland, within District 47, since 2005. His residency has been unit B in that building ever since. He has been operating Mid-Coast Hospitality House, a homeless shelter, in neighboring Rockport, spending many nights there,” stated David Sorensen, Communications Director for the Maine Republican Party.
“Mr. Mank has selflessly dedicated himself to the homeless shelter in Rockport for many years,” Sorensen continued. “All along, he has maintained a residence in District 47. His candidacy is valid, and these desperate attempts by Democrats to knock a Republican out of the race by using Mank’s public service against him are disgraceful.”
Mank told the BDN on Monday that he has been renting apartment B to another person since before he was a candidate. He asked the person to leave this summer and the apartment is now vacant.
Mank said he still considers Rockland his residence even while living in Rockport. He said he has owned a three-unit apartment building in Rockland since December 2005, pays property taxes in Rockland, and has voted in Rockland since November 2006. He also said that he grew up in Rockland and went to schools in the city. Mank also pointed out that he and his wife purchased a single-family home on Orchard Street in Rockland on Aug. 31.
He considers himself resident even though he isn’t. Such arrogance. Tired of questions about it? If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen (i.e., drop out of the race). Guess he’s using Cheney’s non-Wyoming residence as a precedent.
What a bunch of BS. Drop out now before you look even more foolish!
Withdrawn.
” “Here are the facts. Gordon Mank has owned 81 Grace Street in Rockland,
within District 47, since 2005. His residency has been unit B in that
building ever since. He has been operating Mid-Coast Hospitality House, a
homeless shelter, in neighboring Rockport, spending many nights there,”
stated David Sorensen, Communications Director for the Maine Republican
Party.”
I bet his nose grew a foot making that comment, and someone had to douse his pants to put out the fire………………. Oh wait, no he’s a republican everyone EXPECTS them to lie, no harm, no foul.
Well now, Susan Collins bought a house in DC, oh she owns one in Maine, but her mail goes to DC, and she lives there, now, can she be a Maine Senator, she is not a resident offically now?
http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Constitutional_Qualifications_Senators.htm
She is a U.S. Senator, representing the State of Maine. Rules are different.
“No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen. [U.S. Constitution, Article I, section 3, clause 3]”
Maine State Senate Rules:
“No person may be a candidate for election as a member of the House of Representatives unless, at the time of the nomination for placement on a primary, general or special election ballot, that person is a resident in the district which the candidate seeks to represent.”
All people need to do is not vote for him…………………
Republican Hippocrates, Talk about election fraud. Shameful if they can’t stop you from voting they cheat and lie to get elected to an office they don’t qualify for.
Pardon me BUT, Why was it acceptable for Rahm Emmanuel to get on the Chicago ballot for mayor, when he was NOT a resident of Chicago, but of D.C. Just read David Farmer saying Gordon Mank Jr. had the ” Audacity’ to campaign. So then Why is it Okay for Dems. in Chicago to allow Raham the entitlement of his residence as fraud? Now THAT is Shameful. So please be on top of the news when calling Republicans,”Hipporates’. Not even funny. But sad.
I’m not worried what happens in Chicago as I don’t live there. I live in Maine where the Republicans act as if they are holier than thou. When they will do anything to get elected including lying. So sad is right.
Subject: [bdn] Re: House candidate from Rockland says opponent’s residency should be investigated
Sad for the country, Not just Maine. You should be worried about Chicago politics, those same lousy standards in Chicago have already arrived in Maine. as seen in the article. It is true of BOTH sides.
How can we expect the Republicans to respect Maine law when they didn’t even follow their own rules during the party nomination process?
Either you are a legal resident of the town you are running for office in or you aren’t (regardless of party affiliation).
What ever happened to common sense when it comes to following simple rules?????
I’m confused…Mank claimed to be a resident by giving the address of Apt. B of a unit that he owns — then it says that Apt. B was rented out since before he decided to run for office. He now claims he has had the person move out. How did he have any thought to staying or returning to that Apt. if it were rented out. Why doesn’t he just run for office in the town that he actually resides in?
Very good point.
“She said it would be wrong if she found a house in Union and moved her
family but continued to try to campaign for a Rockland/Owls Head seat.” PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do us all a favor and do this!!!
This is not a Republican thing or a Democrat thing. This is a simple issue of 2 highly unqualified people running for something that neither one should get.
“Megan Sanborn, the communications director for the Maine secretary of
state’s office, said Tuesday that the secretary of state had no
authority to act since the deadline for filing a challenge to Manks’
nomination papers was five business days after they were filed, which
would have been in the spring.
“They’re not doing their job,” Dickerson said of both the attorney general and secretary of state.”
And here again is Lizzy just not understanding common law. The law dictates what the AG and Secretary of State can and cannot do. It has been more than 5 days and no one challenged this, OF COURSE THEY ARE DOING THEIR JOB! The law dictates what they can and cannot do, don’t sit there and say they are not doing their job just because it does not match what you want!
God, this woman (and Gordo) need to just plain disappear from this race. Neither one is qualified to change my daughters diaper, much less represent approximately 9,000 people…
I guess what is troubling to me aside from his residency issues, is his apparent lack of interest in debating his opponent. And I have yet to see anything here or in the Village Soup about Mank’s stand on issues or what he hopes to accomplish in the Legislature if he were to get elected.
I have no vote there anymore since I don’t reside in Rockland any longer, even though in Gordo’s opinion, I probably qualify for the ballot since I consider Rockland my home. I am just curious as to wher he stands on issues and I am sure the voters in District 47 would be even more interested than I am.
Next time a city council seat opens up, I will circulate papers for you Ron. After all, you did live in Rockland longer than Mank, and probably could do a better job than the councilors we have now!