COA Magazine: Vol 3. No 2. Summer/Fall 2007

Maine Rx Pingree’s first campaign was as grassroots as they come. She knocked on five thousand doors during what she calls “that incredible political year.” Her opponent was well liked, but a debate foible on his part became a turning point. He labeled Pingree “Alice in Wonderland,” questioning the validity of North Haven’s economy, which resounded as laughable when held against Pingree’s successful North Island Designs. Word spread fast. When she returned home, supporters held up “Welcome to Wonderland” signs.

Although Pingree hadn’t planned for a career in politics, her dogged nature, the genesis of her leadership voice at COA, years of involvement with the North Haven community and her knack for relating small-town Maine to larger issues, form a sequence that feels genuine, as if the sheer will of the universe set her into her role as a public servant. Now, having gained the skills and experience to be successful in a legislature, she feels obligated to continue the work. “I’m not interested in the title,” she says, “only in what I can do with the job.”

In the Maine Senate, Pingree was best known for her attention to health care. In 2000, she worked tirelessly to pass Maine Rx, a groundbreaking bill that forced drug companies to negotiate prescription drug prices with the state. The pharmaceutical lobby challenged the law— arguing that a preauthorization clause could limit Medicaid patients’ access to drugs—and won an injunction that postponed the bill’s 18 | COA