WHAT MAINE REPUBLICANS CAN LEARN FROM JIM OGONOWSKI

Last Tuesday, political junkies from across America watched with limited interest as the Special Congressional Election in Massachusetts’ 5th District came to a close. With no Republican having won a Congressional election in Massachusetts since 1994, the talk at the water cooler at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee no doubt consisted of speculation as to the size of Niki Tsongas’ inevitable victory and the location of her new office once she arrived for work in Washington.

Democrats had good reason to be confident. Massachusetts’ 5th Congressional district boasts a mere 14% Republican registration and has not elected a Republican to Congress since Paul Cronin in 1974. Compound that with the fact that Democrat nominee Niki Tsongas (the wife of the late Congressman Paul Tsongas who happened to have been the one to defeat Cronin in ’76) has a “household” last name.

Pile on the fact that Bill Clinton, John Kerry and Ted Kennedy campaigned hard for Tsongas; she received the endorsement of every newspaper within a 50 mile radius of her district; and Emily’s List, the Sierra Club and the AFL-CIO poured money into the district to run up the score on her hapless Republican opponent who ended up being outspent by a margin of 4-1 come Election Day. Insider accounts are that the Tsongas media buy outweighed her opponent by an 80 to 1 ratio. National Democrats wanted to send a clear message that Republicans had no business running for federal office in Massachusetts.

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In steps Republican Jim Ogonowski, a political outsider with no previous legislative experience, to challenge Tsongas for the open seat. A Massachusetts native, Ogonowski was born and raised in the 5th Congressional District, he grew up on his family’s farm and graduated from the University of Lowell a short distance from his home. Ogonowski served honorably in the United States Air Force. His brother John was the pilot of American Airlines Flight 11, which was hijacked on September 11th and flown into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

More than his biography, it was Ogonowski’s message that captured the attention and imagination of the voters in the 5th Congressional District. Jim ran as a reform-minded political outsider, campaigning against the waste, fraud and abuse coming from both sides of the aisle in Washington. Since he had no previous legislative experience, Jim was able to convince voters that he could be a force for reform in Washington, not just another career politician seeking to make a living off partisan gridlock and at the expense of the constituents.

Ogonowski campaigned hard on the need to make the 2001 and 2003 federal tax cuts permanent, directly and effectively combat illegal immigration, support our troops and their mission in Iraq and protect traditional marriage. He spoke about these issues as a concerned member of the citizenry, not as an insider politician. Most importantly, he let the voters know what he stood for. He was not afraid to campaign proudly on his conservative principles, and he let voters know that he would never compromise those principles for political expediency.

On Election Day, Jim Ogonowski shocked political observers by earning 46% of the vote and nearly defeating Tsongas. Those who were not familiar with Ogonowski’ message wondered how a Republican even came close to Tsongas in Massachusetts’ 5th Congressional District. Those who had met Ogonowski, watched his commercials, read about his principled stances on the issues, particularly on illegal immigration, figured it out pretty quickly.

In the days following the election, newspapers from across the country weighed in and arrived at very similar conclusions regarding Ogonowski’s success. One article published the day before Election Day observed,

“Tsongas is expected to win this seat… but recent polling has shown that Ogonowski is keeping it close. One reason why: He’s running as the outsider while painting Tsongas as the insider, given her last name and the fact that Bill Clinton and Nancy Pelosi have campaigned for her. And if that proves to be the case, Ogonowski’s campaign could serve as a model for Republicans.” (MSNBC First Read, 10/15/07)

Another publication wrote that,

“[Ogonowski’s] outsider message, combined with his efforts to tie rival Niki Tsongas (D) to the status quo, have combined to make a supposed snoozer a real race… even in a CD that gave Kerry 57% in ’04. Ogonowski has run a race that many GOPers could emulate successfully in any open-seat or challenger contest, in New England and elsewhere.” (National Journal’s House Race Hotline, 10/16/07)

We’ve got a candidate running Ogonowski’s type of “model race” right here in Maine; his name is Dean Scontras and he is the Republican frontrunner in Maine’s open 1st Congressional District. Completing his first fundraising quarter with over $100,000 raised, a record for a first-time Republican candidate in Maine, Scontras has all of the right qualities to succeed where Ogonowski fell short.

Dean Scontras is a third generation Maine native, born and raised in Maine’s 1st Congressional District in the town of Kittery. Dean’s father, Pete Scontras, served in the Navy during the Korean War, completing his military career as an engineer at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Dean attended Traip Academy in Kittery, playing quarterback for the Rangers during their championship days. He went on to earn a partial football scholarship at the University of Maine, graduating in 1991 with a degree in Political Science and Public Management. In an era where money and influence flows in from out of state, Dean is one of the few native Mainers in this race.

Dean’s message is simple: Washington is a mess and it’s going to take someone from the outside with a fresh perspective to clean it up. We’ve seen career politicians from both parties go to Washington on empty promises and broken rhetoric, claiming that they are different while voting with the political elites and special interests over the interests of their constituents. Maine simply cannot afford to send another career politician to Washington.

Republican voters throughout the 1st Congressional District are starting to get it. Ogonowski captured 46% of the vote in a district with only 14% registered Republicans. With Maine voters fairly evenly split between Republicans, Democrats and Independents, I like his chances.

As Dean makes his way around the district the mood has been moving from resignation to optimism. Party activists who had previously considered sitting on the sidelines are getting into the game. People who have never engaged in the political process prior to meeting Dean are contributing to his campaign and signing up to volunteer to help in the months ahead. Many who have become discouraged at the entire process of professional politicians being proffered by political pundits, those who have grown weary that the only result has been a growing government and a growing national dependency upon that government, have determined to do what they can to help make a difference.

In short, the rank and file of the citizenry is getting involved, and that may just be what it takes to make the difference in Maine’s 1st Congressional District. That and a candidate like Dean Scontras. Articulate, intelligent, and a tireless campaigner, Dean is exactly the right candidate at exactly the right time for Maine. Don’t miss out on the action. Give us a call and Dean will come to where you are to meet you and your friends and family. It’s time to get back in the game and put a Republican in Maine’s 1st Congressional House seat.

Michael Pajak is the campaign manager for Dean Scontras for Congress.