Pat LaMarche Thanks Volunteers and Town Clerks

Augusta, Maine — On March 15, 2006, Pat LaMarche filed the more than 2,000 signatures necessary to officially qualify as the Green Independent candidate for Governor of Maine. She received the support of almost five hundred volunteers and almost three thousand petition signers. Many signatures on her petitions came from Mainers who switched their party affiliation in order to support her candidacy.

"As we pass this first milestone in the campaign," said Pat LaMarche, "I'd like to take a moment to thank the many volunteers who worked so hard for so many weeks to make this happen. I'd also like to give my thanks to the hard-working town clerks who spent countless hours checking and approving the signatures of myself and the other candidates running for office in November. These civil servants went out of their way, as they do in every election, to make democracy work in our state. They are the unsung heroes of Maine's Clean Elections process, which is the envy of fair elections advocates all across the nation."

While every volunteer made an important contribution to the successful filing of the LaMarche signatures, four deserve special mention because of their extraordinary efforts:

• Stacey Wentworth pedaled his bicycle nearly 800 miles around his home town of Arundel to collect over 200 signatures.
• Martin Stephens took a leave of absence from his job for a month and lived off of his savings so that he could manage the signature-gathering around Bangor. With the signatures safely filed and Pat assured of being on the ballot, Martin has returned to his full-time job.
• Audrey Marra, a senior citizen from Wayne, collected signatures for Pat in-between visits to her doctor. Pat's proven commitment to seniors and to health care for all were what motivated this still-active Mainer.
• Paul Dyer spent weeks on the road in support of Pat’s campaign, gathering signatures, picking up petitions from other volunteers, and making sure that each one got to the right town clerk for verification. A committed health care activist, he knows that the time he is spending to help Pat will result in better health care for everyone.

"Now that we have succeeded in our first task, we have three weeks to get the 2,500 signatures and $5 checks necessary to have Pat run as a Clean Elections Fund candidate," said Maribeth Stuart, the Communications Director of the LaMarche for Governor campaign. "When she qualifies, this campaign will successfully challenge the Republican and Democratic candidates with a campaign focused on a return to the Maine values of social and fiscal responsibility."

For more information about the LaMarche for Governor campaign or to volunteer or make a contribution, please go to www.pat2006.com, write to contact@pat2006.com, or call 207-318-4961.