The Democratic primary for a state Senate seat representing parts of Portland and Westbrook is a rematch of the 2022 race, where longtime public officeholder Jill Duson easily beat her challenger, Kenneth Capron.

Duson, a former Portland city councilor and appointed mayor, captured 90% of the vote in the 2022 Democratic primary and earned nearly 2,900 more votes to win the nomination for the District 27 seat. That fall, she won 78% of the general election vote, securing nearly 10,200 more votes than her Republican challenger.

The winner of this year’s primary will take on Republican Dale Holman, of Portland, who ran unsuccessfully for a House seat two years ago. But it’s the Democratic primary in June that will likely determine the next state senator because the seat is a Democratic stronghold, with registered Democrats vastly outnumbering Republicans.

The primary is scheduled for June 11, but absentee voting is already underway, with the final day of in-person absentee voting being June 6, though limited exceptions apply. Absentee ballots must be returned to the voter’s municipality by 8 p.m. on Election Day.

Duson, 70, served more than two decades in elected office in Portland, including six terms on the City Council. She’s also a former compliance director and former commissioner of the Human Rights Commission.

As a senator, Duson served on two of the most important legislative committees: the Government Oversight Committee, the only committee with subpoena power charged with investigating state agencies and programs, and the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee, which reviews and amends the governor’s two-year budget before sending it to lawmakers for final approval.

For accomplishments, Duson pointed to her work on the budget committee, where she pushed for affordable housing investments, helped secure additional General Assistance funding, as well as long-sought funding for the dredging for Portland Harbor and millions in funding to help repair waterfront infrastructure and make it more resilient against climate change.

“It was challenging and rewarding,” Duson said of her freshman-year assignments. “It’s a lot of work, but I got a chance to see how state government comes together by going over every budget line and that was a pretty good learning experience. I look forward to being even more effective my second term.”

Duson wants to continue her efforts to ban the sale of flavored tobacco and to secure funding for services for victims of sexual assault. She also is looking forward to seeing the implementation of a bill she sponsored to create a comprehensive plan for a water-dependent – or “blue – economy in the state, including aquaculture, commercial fishing, renewable energy and marine sciences.

Capron, 73, is an accountant, systems analyst and financial fraud investigator. He has run unsuccessfully as a Republican, independent and Democrat for a variety of local and state offices, often touting his unconventional thinking and approach to issues, ranging from docking a cruise ship on the Portland waterfront to use as housing and support services for people who are homeless, to installing a micro rail system in Portland for public transportation.

Capron said he is still pursuing the cruise ship idea, only now he wants to turn it into affordable housing for low-income residents, rather than using it as homeless shelter. He is also running to help address the workforce shortage and to bring fiscal restraint to the Legislature, raising concerns that state will soon run out of money to support its new and existing programs.

He knows he has an uphill climb.

“I’m hoping there will be a little change in direction this time,” Capron said, adding that he’s doing more outreach and knocking on doors this cycle. “When you have an incumbent, it’s hard to get past that.”

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