LEWISTON — Mark Cayer, a former City Council president, is officially on the ballot for mayor. 

The required voter signatures were verified by the City Clerk’s office Wednesday, and he joins Charles Soule as mayoral candidates who have been verified so far.

Ben Chin and Ron Potvin have also taken out nomination papers and are actively campaigning. Both intend to return papers soon. Candidates for all open municipal seats have until 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 8, to return papers. 

Mayoral candidates must submit nomination papers signed by at least 100 and no more than 200 qualified voters of Lewiston.  

A news release Thursday said Cayer has a long history of public service and personal ties to Lewiston that stretch back more than one hundred years. His parents, like his grandparents before them, worked in the Hill and Bates mills, making textiles.

Cayer served three terms as a city councilor for Ward 6 between 2009-15. In 2014, he ran, unsuccessfully, for District 61 in the Maine House of Representatives. 

Cayer told the Sun Journal in March that his focus as mayor would be business development, retention and living-wage jobs.

“My decision to run for mayor is not one I make lightly — but Lewiston is at a tipping point and we, as a city, must take control of our future,” he said. “Our next mayor needs to be the champion of the community, highlighting our assets and bringing people together to solve our challenges.”

The release said Cayer will be a responsible steward of taxpayer dollars and that he recognizes the importance of creating policy that is not hurtful to the people in the community. 

“I have not before, nor will I ever, bring party politics or hurtful agendas to the table,” he said. “The political spectrum over the past couple of years has become polarizing, creating great divides between landlords and tenants, Democrats and Republicans, even businesses and lawmakers. This is not the way Lewiston should be presented and I will work diligently to make Lewiston known statewide as a safe place to live, work, develop and invest in.” 

Cayer, a Lewiston native, relocated to the Farmington area with his wife during the early ’90s to work in law enforcement. He eventually became lieutenant of a criminal investigation division, and in 2008, he returned to Lewiston to start his own private investigation business, Maine PI Service. 

His election to the council started just after the recession of 2008. In March, he said he was proud of being able to bring together opposing political viewpoints during his time as council president and to weather the storm of tough financial times.

Thursday’s news release said Cayer “championed major debt reduction while still moving the city forward.” 

At the end of his third term in 2015, Cayer chose to step back from public service to focus on his business, acknowledging that he would likely run for mayor in the future.

“That time is now,” he said. 

arice@sunjournal.com 

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