In the U.S. House of Representatives, Maine has just two voices out of 435. It is crucial to the future of our state that those we send to Washington be strong, articulate and experienced. On June 11, voters will begin that process by choosing nominees to fill the open seat in the 2nd Congressional District.

As current and former Maine Republican legislators, we know the qualities that an individual must possess to be successful in a legislative setting. No Member of Congress can go it alone to deliver for his or her district. Our next Member of Congress must be someone who has the ability to work with others to get things done.

Our next member of Congress must know the district and understand the challenges our people face. Our next Member of Congress must know Washington and how to navigate it to Maine’s advantage. For all these reasons, we and more than two dozen of our colleagues in every county across the 2nd District are united in the belief that our next Congressman should be Kevin Raye.

No other candidate has Kevin Raye’s breadth and depth of experience serving the entire 2nd District. Over the course of more than 17 years, Kevin proved himself a tireless worker serving the people of Maine as a key and trusted aide to Olympia Snowe. As a caseworker, Kevin helped our constituents cut through red tape and solve problems. As Olympia’s district director, he helped guide our communities through the maze of federal bureaucracy. As chief of staff to Sen. Snowe in Washington, for six years Kevin held the most important and demanding job one can hold on Capitol Hill short of being a Member of Congress – where he gained valuable experience and insight into how Washington works.

Kevin Raye brings another dimension that we believe is important. He is a son of rural Maine. He grew up in Washington County and understands the struggles that Maine families encounter every day. He believes that nothing is more important than being able to provide for your family. That’s why Kevin Raye’s top priority is jobs.

The 2nd District consists of ten full counties and part of an eleventh. As Kevin noted during the recent televised debate with his opponents, those eleven counties have the distinction of being the eleven counties with the highest unemployment in Maine. Likewise, the median income in our counties falls far short of that in the 1st District.

Every candidate in both parties talks about jobs. However, only Kevin Raye has received the support of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Kevin Raye truly understands what it will take to bring quality good-paying jobs to the 2nd District. He is the only candidate who lays it on the line that it will take a partnership between the state and federal levels to achieve true economic prosperity in Maine.

That is because it is up to us in Augusta to set Maine’s transportation priorities and correct the failed policies that have cost Maine jobs: high taxes, burdensome workers comp costs, and over-regulation. Then it is up to our Congressional Delegation to secure our fair share of federal resources.

Kevin Raye has a practical and workable strategy for creating jobs – and the know-how to implement it. His plan includes increased research and development funding for our hospitals and universities, policies to encourage access to technology in rural areas, and fighting for our fair share of federal transportation funding to improve our overall transportation infrastructure – including roads, bridges, airports, ports and rail.

Creating new jobs isn’t enough, however. Kevin will also fight to preserve jobs in Maine’s farming, fishing, and forest products industries – jobs that have been a way of life in Maine families for generations.

Too many of Maine’s kids have grown up and moved away because of the lack of jobs. It’s time for this cycle of broken dreams and scattered families to end. We believe Kevin Raye is the candidate best suited to work with others to help create an environment that will allow Maine’s talented young adults to stay here to carve out their lives and raise their families. We hope Republicans across the 2nd District will join with us in voting for Kevin Raye on June 11.

This commentary was written by the following: State Sens. Betty Lou Mitchell, R-Etna, and Kevin Shorey, R-Calais, Rep. Russ Treadwell, R-Carmel, Honorables Dana Devoe, R-Orono, Rob Cameron, R-Rumford, Mary MacBride, R-Presque Isle, Tom Perkins, R-Blue Hill, and Charlie Webster, R-Farmington.