Sen. Tom Saviello won’t confirm or deny he’s considering leaving GOP

Yesterday I reported here at State & Capitol that John Frary of Farmington is considering challenging Republican Sen. Tom Saviello of Wilton in the Senate District 18 primary election.

Then this morning, Ethan Strimling over at the BDN’s Agree to Disagree blog cited an unnamed source to report that Saviello would leave the Republican Party and return to being an independent if a primary campaign is lodged against him.

“Saviello would declare himself an independent prior to the March 1 deadline,” Strimling wrote in the blog post. “The information comes from a source who declined to be named to avoid negative consequences.”

That caused me to go up to the Senate and ask the question of Saviello himself.

“I’m just keeping all of my options open,” said Saviello. “Whatever happens, happens. That’s all I’m going to say about it.”

Saviello has until March 1 to make a decision. If he were to leave the Republican Party, it would be the third time he has switched parties during his career in the Legislature.

UPDATE TO THE UPDATE: Also, it’s worth noting here that Frary told me yesterday that Gov. Paul LePage has had no role whatsoever in recruiting him to run against Saviello.

“The rumor is that the governor recruited me,” said Frary. “He had no hand in it.”

Christopher Cousins

About Christopher Cousins

Christopher Cousins has worked as a journalist in Maine for more than 15 years and covered state government for numerous media organizations before joining the Bangor Daily News in 2009.