SUMMERS FILES TO RUN FOR THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

June 18, 2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:  Ruth Summers, (207) 332-0111

 

PORTLAND, MAINE -- Declaring that Maine needs strong, experienced leadership in Washington, Charles Summers today announced he would be a candidate to represent Maine’s First Congressional District in Congress in 2008. 

Summers, former Regional Administrator for the U.S. Small Business Administration and 2004 nominee for Congress, today filed his statement of candidacy with the Federal Elections Commission.  The filing makes formal Summers’ intention to seek the Republican nomination for Congress in Maine’s First Congressional District.  

"With only two Members of Congress, it’s crucial that Maine have strong, experienced representation in Congress.  I am eager to put my extensive, real-world experience with small businesses, federal and state government, and the U.S. military to work on behalf of Maine’s hard-working families,” said Summers. 

“The next Congress will be especially important to the future of the nation.  We need to create jobs by making our economy strong, invest in small businesses, help provide families relief from the increasing burden of health care, and ensure our nation’s security both at home and in the world,” Summers said.  “Maine’s primary election is only one year away, and I look forward to participating in a robust debate about the future direction of our state and nation.  I would be deeply honored to represent Maine in Congress.” 

Summers has more than two decades of experience in federal and state government.  Since 2005, he served as New England Regional Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration.  In this role, he set small business policy for the region, worked with countless small business proprietors to help resolve and meet their needs, and oversaw administrative district offices in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. 

Summers resigned from his SBA post on June 8th after the Navy recalled him to active duty.  Summers, a Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy, will be stationed in Baghdad attached to a joint command participating in Operation Iraqi Freedom attached to Navy Strategic Communications.  

In 2004, Summers won the Republican nomination in the First District Congressional race, securing a higher percentage of the vote than any previous challenger to Democratic incumbent Tom Allen. Previously, he served for nine years as State Director for U.S. Senator Olympia J. Snowe, and before that served two terms in the Maine State Senate representing Maine’s Senate District 31 (Saco, Scarborough, Old Orchard Beach, and Dayton). 

Summers and his wife, Ruth, reside in Scarborough and have two children;  Tricia, a graduate of Queen's University who currently lives and works in New York City and Chas, who will enter the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland on June 27, 2007.  

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