Ethan King Strimling (born October 19, 1967) is an American non-profit executive and politician from
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...
. Strimling was elected
Mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
of
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropo ...
in 2015. Strimling previously served as a
Democratic state senator from 2003 to 2009. After leaving the
Maine Senate
The Maine Senate is the upper house of the Maine Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maine. The Senate currently consists of 35 members representing an equal number of districts across the state, though the Maine Constituti ...
, he was the Executive Director of LearningWorks, a
West End non-profit organization, and has served as a political columnist and commentator for the
Portland Press Herald
The ''Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram'' is a morning daily newspaper with a website that serves southern Maine and is focused on the greater metropolitan area around Portland, Maine, in the United States.
Founded in 1862, its roots e ...
.
Early life
Ethan Strimling was born and raised in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
and attended the
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...
for
Theater
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...
from 1985 to 1987. Later, he attended the
University of Maine
The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a public land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the flagship university of the University of Maine System. It is classifie ...
and received his
B.A.
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
in History. He then pursued a master's degree in education from
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
and received it in 1994. He is Jewish.
After school, he went to
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
to work as a legislative aide for then-
First District Congressman Tom Andrews. He then came back to Maine to serve as State Senator
Dale McCormick's Campaign Manager for her 1996 Congressional race.
Strimling began serving as the Executive Director of Portland West, a non-profit social-service agency that works with at-risk kids and low-income families in Portland's West End, in 1997. Strimling has also served on the boards of several political and non-profit committees, including Maine Won't Discriminate, Casinos NO!, and the Maine
NAACP.
Political career
Strimling's first run for public office was for the Portland City Council in 1999. He was defeated by incumbent Jack Dawson by just 24 votes. During a recount, the City Council awarded 35 disputed ballots to Strimling after his campaign argued that voters who filled in a blank line below his name had intended to vote for him. When Dawson appealed the decision to Maine Superior Court, Strimling announced that he would step aside and give Dawson the council seat.
In 2002, Strimling ran his first campaign for the
Maine State Senate to succeed
Anne M. Rand. He was elected in his first race with 74% of the vote and again in 2004 with 76%. He was elected for a third term in 2006. In the State Senate, Strimling was the Chair of the Labor Committee and also a member of the Taxation Committee. He has also served as Chair of the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee, and in 2006, was Co-Chair of Maine's Homeland Security Task Force.
In 2008, when Democratic Congressman
Tom Allen announced that he would challenge U.S. Senator
Susan Collins
Susan Margaret Collins (born December 7, 1952) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Maine. A member of the Republican Party, she has held her seat since 1997 and is Maine's longest-serving member of Con ...
, Strimling declared that he would run for
Maine's 1st congressional district
Maine's 1st congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Maine. The geographically smaller of the state's two congressional districts, the district covers the southern coastal area of the state. The district consists ...
. In the June 10 Democratic primary, Strimling finished fourth with 5,833 votes (out of 55,382 votes cast). He was succeeded in the Maine Senate by fellow Democrat
Justin Alfond
Justin Loring Alfond (born January 8, 1975) is an American politician and real estate developer. He served as a Democratic State Senator from the 8th District, which represents much of Portland. Alfond was first elected to the State Senate in 20 ...
.
In February 2010, when Strimling was appointed to the New England board of the
Anti-Defamation League, he became the first Maine resident to be appointed to the position.
On July 26, 2011, Strimling formally announced he was running for Mayor of Portland. Fellow former State Senator
Michael F. Brennan won the
election
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...
.
Strimling and former
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
State Senator Phil Harriman wrote the "Agree to Disagree" column on the ''
Bangor Daily News
The ''Bangor Daily News'' is an American newspaper covering a large portion of central and eastern Maine, published six days per week in Bangor, Maine.
The ''Bangor Daily News'' was founded on June 18, 1889; it merged with the ''Bangor Whig and ...
'' website, which was named the "2013 Best State Political Blog" by ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
''. They are also political analysts for
WCSH
WCSH (channel 6) is a television station in Portland, Maine, United States, affiliated with NBC and owned by Tegna Inc. The station's studios are located on Congress Square in Downtown Portland, and its transmitter is located on Winn Mountain in ...
TV, working in tandem. On May 23, 2014, Strimling and Harriman wrote the last ''Daily News'' column and started writing their column for the ''
Portland Press Herald
The ''Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram'' is a morning daily newspaper with a website that serves southern Maine and is focused on the greater metropolitan area around Portland, Maine, in the United States.
Founded in 1862, its roots e ...
'' on May 25. Strimling also is an analyst for
WGAN
WGAN (560 AM) is an commercial radio station licensed to Portland, Maine. The station is owned by Saga Communications and it airs a news/talk radio format. The station calls itself "WGAN Newsradio 98.5 FM and AM 560." The studios and offices ...
radio.
On August 18, 2015, Strimling announced his intention to launch a second campaign for Mayor of Portland in the
2015 election on November 3, 2015. He won the race without needing an
instant runoff, obtaining 51% of the vote. Incumbent Mayor
Michael Brennan conceded the race at about 10 PM on election night.
Strimling announced his intention to seek a second term as Mayor in the
2019 Portland, Maine mayoral election on June 23, 2019. Strimling lost to Kate Snyder.
In 2020, Strimling played a leading role in People First Portland, a campaign to pass five municipal ballot initiatives to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour, enact rent control, ban facial recognition surveillance, limit short term rentals, and a Green New Deal. Four out of five initiatives passed (only the short-term rentals limit failed) despite being outspent by the Portland business community and the opposition of Mayor Kate Snyder.
In 2021 Strimling funded a
Push Poll showing
Maine Senate
The Maine Senate is the upper house of the Maine Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maine. The Senate currently consists of 35 members representing an equal number of districts across the state, though the Maine Constituti ...
President
Troy Jackson leading former governor
Paul LePage
Paul Richard LePage (; born October 9, 1948) is an American politician who served as the 74th Governor of Maine from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, LePage served two terms as a city councilor in Waterville, Maine, before being ...
in a hypothetical matchup in the
2022 Maine gubernatorial election with current
Governor of Maine
The governor of Maine is the head of government of the U.S. state of Maine. Before Maine was admitted to the Union in 1820, Maine was part of Massachusetts and the governor of Massachusetts was chief executive.
The current governor of Maine is J ...
Janet Mills
Janet Trafton Mills (born December 30, 1947) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the 75th governor of Maine since January 2019. She previously served as the Maine Attorney General on two occasions.
A member of the Democratic Pa ...
also polled against LePage.
Personal life
Strimling and Mary Beeaker were married from 2004-2017. Strimling’s affair with his campaign manager, Stephanie Clifford, led to the end of both their marriages. He has no children and resides in Portland, Maine.
Electoral results
*2008 Democratic Primary for Congress - 1st District
**
Chellie Pingree
Chellie Marie Pingree ( ; ''née'' Johnson; born April 2, 1955) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, her district includes most of the southern part of the state, inclu ...
44%
**
Adam Cote 28%
**
Michael Brennan 11%
**Ethan Strimling 11%
**
Mark Lawrence 5%
**Stephen Meister 1%
*2011 Mayoral
**Michael Brennan 26.76%
**Ethan Strimling 22.42%
**Nicholas Mavodones 15.00%
**
David A. Marshall
The legislative branch of Portland, Maine, is a city council. It is a nine seat council, composed of representatives from the city's five districts, three councilors elected citywide and the full-time elected Mayor of Portland. The eight councilo ...
7.74%
**Jed Rathband 7.12%
**Jill Duson 4.26%
**Markos Miller 3.67%
**Richard Dodge 3.42%
**Christopher Vail 2.06%
**Peter Bryant 1.87%
**
John Eder 1.38%
**Charles Bragdon 1.09%
**Hamza Haadoow 0.94%
**Jodie Lapchick 0.65%
**Note: Through 14 rounds of instant runoffs, Brennan extended the lead he built on Election Day. During the retabulation process, second choice votes for lower ranked candidates were systematically reallocated to higher ranked candidates until an individual claimed more than 50 percent of the total.
*2015 Mayoral
**Ethan Strimling 51.1%
**Michael Brennan 38.4%
**Thomas MacMillan 10.5%
**Note: Total Votes 17,924. Ranked choice runoff was not in effect as Strimling broke 50 percent in round 1.
References
External links
Maine Legislature - Senator Ethan Strimling(official government site)
Maine Senate Democrats - Senator Ethan StrimlingProject Vote Smart - Senator Ethan King Strimling (ME)profile
*''Follow the Money'' - Ethan King Strimling
200620042002
campaign contributions
Profile
at SourceWatch
The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) is a progressive nonprofit watchdog and advocacy organization based in Madison, Wisconsin. CMD publishes ExposedbyCMD.org, SourceWatch.org, and ALECexposed.org.
History
CMD was founded in 1993 by prog ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Strimling, Ethan
1967 births
Living people
Harvard Graduate School of Education alumni
Jewish American state legislators in Maine
Jewish mayors of places in the United States
Juilliard School alumni
Democratic Party Maine state senators
Mayors of Portland, Maine
Politicians from New York City
Radio personalities from Maine
University of Maine alumni
21st-century American politicians
Jews and Judaism in Portland, Maine
21st-century American Jews