PITTSFIELD — Both Republican primary candidates for District 29 of the Maine House of Representatives support welfare reform.

On June 12, voters in Clinton, Detroit and Pittsfield will choose between Bob Engelhardt Sr. and John Ring of Pittsfield. Whomever is chosen will face Democratic candidate Stanley Short, of Pittsfield, in the November election. Term limits prevent incumbent Stacey Fitts, R-Pittsfield, from running.

Englehardt, 70, said the welfare system in Maine needs pruning.

“I’m all for helping people out, but I’m not for enabling people. I think there’s a huge difference there. I think the welfare system costs a terrible amount of money and has to be managed better,” Engelhardt said.

His opponent agrees.

In 2004, Ring, 71, campaigned for the same seat, with welfare reform as his platform. The issue proved unpopular among voters, Ring said, and his bid was unsuccessful.

“I was just a little ahead of my time,” he said.

This time, however, Ring thinks the issue has gained traction with voters, in part from recent efforts by Gov. Paul LePage toward reform.

Bob Engelhardt Sr.

Engelhardt has never held an elected position, but he brings a wide range of experiences to bear, he said.

For more than five years, Englehardt served on the Plymouth planning board. He was chairman of the Pittsfield Community Theater during its early days in the 1970s, and continues to be involved today. He owns a cabin rentals business.

Recently, Engelhardt has knocked on a lot of doors within the district to stump for votes. The people he’s spoken with are concerned about welfare fraud, he said.

“They’re not against welfare, they’re against the abuse of it,” he said.

Engelhardt said the LePage is taking the issue in the right direction.

“I think he’s trying to get it all fixed so that the very young and very old are taken care of, and the other people who can go to work go to work,” Englehardt said.

Engelhardt, a publicly funded candidate, said his other priorities include a balanced budget, lower taxes and more jobs. He is confident the issues will win over voters.

“I fully expect to be there,” he said of the house seat.

John Ring

Ring gained political experience in municipal government.

For three years in the mid-90s, Ring served on the Pittsfield Town Council, and he was mayor for a one-year term in 1995.

He also has experience in Augusta. From 2004 to 2008, Ring served was assistant sergeant-at-arms in the state Senate.

“I know the workings of it,” Ring said of the State House. “I’m not going to spend the first year learning how to get around and find the committee rooms. I already know where they’re at.”

Ring contends he has an advantage over Engelhardt and Short.

“Neither one of them have any political experience, which isn’t a bad thing, but I think it helps if you have it,” he said.

Although Ring ran as a Democrat in 2004, he describes himself as ultra-conservative.

“If I spend a dollar, I want $1.35 in change,” he joked.

As a former Baptist preacher, Ring said he is also conservative on some social issues, including his belief that marriage should be limited to heterosexual couples.

Ring also favors tax breaks and less regulation for small businesses, which will spur growth, he said.

He is a publicly funded candidate.

Ben McCanna — 861-9239

bmccanna@centralmaine.com

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