CAPE ELIZABETH, Maine — Could Senator Angus King lose his seat to another independent? Jason Cherry certainly hopes so.
As one of two candidates running outside of a major party in the race for U.S. Senate this November, Cherry is leaning into his decades of experience in government to win over voters.
After practicing as a defense attorney, Cherry became a special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in response to the Sept. 11 attacks.
“I’ve had over twenty-five years of public service, and that is really a passion for me,” Cherry said. After a career in law enforcement, he retired to Bangor, Maine. Now he lives in Unity and practices cybersecurity law.
Cherry's time in law enforcement is the engine behind his platform.
“I've been an investigator of crimes against children and human trafficking, so I'm very interested in a balanced way that law and order can be taken, and rehabilitation as well,” Cherry said.
On policy, this translates to support for tighter border security, with Cherry criticizing both Democrats and Republicans for what he sees as mass immigration without a broader strategy.
“We’re pushing people into cities without a plan,” Cherry said.
He also favors slapping economic sanctions on China for the country’s role in producing and shipping the chemical ingredients for deadly synthetic opioids, like fentanyl.
“This is drugs, poisons being sold to the rest of the world which they need to take responsibility for,” Cherry added.
Cherry isn't alone in his quest to deny King of a third term. Beyond the incumbent, he’ll have to beat out Democrat David Costello and Republican Demi Kouzounas. He also faces the unique hurdle of distinguishing his brand of independent from King’s.
“I know that he's a very popular candidate, and I know that some of my propositions cross with him,” Cherry said.
In certain areas of their platforms, the two align. King has been a staunch supporter of supporting Ukraine’s war effort against Russia. Cherry, who credits Ukrainians with helping to teach him Russian (a native language to many Ukrainians), agrees whole heartedly.
“Putin's regime has taken a country and a people that were heading on a path to democracy and derailed it completely,” Cherry said.
But on another issue – abortion – the two independents vary in approach. While King supports codifying the right to an abortion in federal law, Cherry wants the federal government to establish a minimum number of weeks, which states could then expand upon but not slash. This means, under Cherry's plan, abortion could be restricted only up to the federal minimum.
“The U.S. Constitution represents the minimum rights that a person can have. Each state can actually expand those rights beyond that,” Cherry said.
On the issue of guns, he says he’s a strong supporter of the 2nd amendment but would like to see red flag laws expanded and private gun purchase loopholes closed.
Ultimately, he insists his candidacy was not born out of resistance to King’s time in Washington, but out of a desire to give voters another option.
“I made a decision to run without actually Angus King being in the picture. I was surprised that he ran again," Cherry explained. "But regardless, I had made the decision to run.”