Alan Caron of Freeport has qualified to run for governor as an independent candidate in November.
Caron’s campaign submitted 4,332 certified signatures from registered Maine voters to the Secretary of State’s Office on Thursday – well above the 4,000 needed for an independent to qualify for the November ballot. He will join one other independent, State Treasurer Terry Hayes, on the ballot along with the Democratic and Republican nominees resulting from the parties’ primary elections on June 12.
Caron is an entrepreneur best known for his work to improve Maine’s economy.
He is the owner of Caron Communications, a strategic planning consulting firm. In 2003, he founded the nonprofit GrowSmart Maine, which helped to produce a report, “Charting Maine’s Future,” that shaped discussions in Augusta on strategies to revitalize the state’s economy through preservation of Maine’s “quality of place” but also investment in key areas of economic strength.
More recently, Caron formed Envision Maine to work with businesses, government and nonprofits on ways to improve the state’s economy. He was also a freelance columnist for the Maine Sunday Telegram/Portland Press Herald.
Caron launched his gubernatorial bid in November and, to date, has largely financed the campaign with $375,000 of his own money, according to the most recent finance reports.
If elected governor, Caron pledged to focus on: putting Maine “on the national map” for small-business creation and growth, modernizing and streamlining state government, energy independence, access to health care, and encouraging more young people to live and work in Maine.
“After watching years of paralysis and bickering in Augusta, the voters of Maine are looking for a real change that goes beyond replacing one party with the other,” Caron said in a statement. “I offer a long track record of bringing people together and a new and hopeful vision for moving Maine’s economy and government into the 21st century.”
Friday was the deadline for independent candidates to file signatures needed to appear on November’s ballot.
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