Cumberland County DA candidates hold press conferences on Thursday
Cumberland County District Attorney Jonathan Sahrbeck and his challenger, Jackie Sartoris, spoke to reporters on Thursday.
PORTLAND, Maine — Just days before the June 14 primary election in the Cumberland County prosecutor’s race, the two Democratic candidates spoke to reporters Thursday.
District Attorney Jonathan Sahrbeck held a press conference inside the Cumberland County Courthouse to address claims made by a political action committee (PAC) that funded advertisements for Sartoris.
“I couldn’t tell you why this PAC is getting involved in this race,” Sahrbeck said. “What happened because of [its] implication in this race is that we are not talking about the significant issues that we have here in Cumberland County.”
One such issue highlighted at the press conference and referenced in an attack announcement is Sahrbeck’s record in sex trafficking cases.
Catherine Wilson is the executive director of Stop Trafficking US and was one of three speakers at the event. She said Sahrbeck has always been committed to helping victims of sex trafficking since before he took office.
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“[Sahrbeck] returns calls, shows it, and there it is. He’s there for survivors, like me,” Wilson added.
Members of other organizations dedicated to stopping sex trafficking have also spoken out in favor of Sahrbeck’s record on this issue.
Sartoris, an assistant Kennebec County prosecutor, held a virtual press conference Thursday afternoon.
“I said right away when I saw the first ad, which surprised me as much as anyone else, that I didn’t like the tone of those ads,” she said. declared.
Next week’s re-election candidate said she is running on criminal justice reform, holding the criminal justice system more accountable and helping our state’s drug addiction crisis.
Sartoris said the PAC ads distracted voters from the real message of the two candidates’ platforms. She reminded voters that the ads are out of her control.
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