I’ve been procrastinating on a column about Maine’s Democratic gubernatorial primary election because, quite frankly, we have a really great field of candidates and I would be happy with any of them as governor. (Except Angus King III, I’m afraid. I’m sure he’s a nice guy, but I’m inherently suspicious of rich businessmen seeking more power.)

Most of the flock has relevant governing experience. While I understand the pull of electing “an outsider” to “shake things up” or whatever, I also want someone who knows how to run the government and make sure the roads get fixed, you know? 

On the one hand, I’m grateful for ranked-choice voting — it’s made the election so much nicer. I don’t think I’ve seen a single attack ad yet in the governor’s race. I hope the job industry for the guys who edit pictures of politicians to make them look all shadowy is doing OK, not to mention the deep-voiced ad narrator industry.

But on the other hand, trying to figure out the order I prefer candidates in feels like I’m back picking out my Top 8 friends on Myspace again. (I’m joking. My parents wouldn’t let me have a Myspace. By the time Facebook came along, they’d given up — as did U.S. government regulators everywhere.) 

My ranking will be: Troy Jackson first; Shenna Bellows second; Dr. Nirav Shah third; Hannah Pingree fourth. 

We are living through the greatest upward transfer of wealth since the Gilded Age, from workers to the ownership and investment class. There’s no sense of financial security for anyone but the richest few. And we are so far gone down this road that patchwork, piecemeal solutions aren’t going to cut it. A commission here and a tax break there isn’t going to fix the sense that nobody feels they have much of a future to look forward to, especially young people. 

I think Troy Jackson has the best plans to deal with the root causes of our inequalities and struggles. He will not be intimidated by the rich donors who tend to direct politics from behind the scenes. He’s got the dreamy leftist ideals you’d expect from someone who looks like — well, me (tattoos, tote bag, undercut), but he looks like everyone’s favorite uncle who taught them how to fish. Plus, the nurses union endorsed him. And I trust nurses’ judgment. 

I’m also a fan of Shenna Bellows. She’s got experience as an executive leader — head of the ACLU in Maine, and you know I’m all about those civil liberties bona fides — as well as a state senator. While I’m sure all Democrats running will stand up to the Trump administration, I think Shenna will probably have the best sassy one-liners about it.

She’s also made several tough calls as secretary of state, including a few I disagreed with, but nobody can say she lacks the courage to do what she thinks is the right thing. Also as the secretary of state, she brought several important functions online, like voter registration and making BMV appointments, which, as a homebody millennial who has to take along an infant anywhere she goes now, I really, really appreciate. Plus, currently only 28% of American governors are women. It would be cool to get those numbers up.

Then of course there’s Dr Shah. I’ve literally had a sticker with his face on it stuck to my car’s dash for the past five years, so obviously I like the guy. Given how vital healthcare is and how difficult it is getting to access these days, I feel like having a doctor in charge would be a good idea. Also he’s a lawyer (and, apparently, an overachiever).

I know some people are still weirdly mad about masks but I think Shah did a great job as head of the Maine CDC during the worst pandemic in a century; he’s a fabulous public communicator, a necessity for any governor. He was also the second in command at the federal CDC, so we know he’s good at dealing with crises. 

I’m going to root for whoever wins the primary to win the general, and I’m going to write columns about things they screw up if I think they’ve screwed something up.

I’m excited for Maine’s future; I do feel hopeful about it.

One thing I’ll say for whoever wins the Democratic primary for governor — regardless of how moderate they end up being or how bipartisan their outreach is — the conservative press and Republican lawmakers are going to treat them as the second coming of Stalin. The winner should act accordingly.