UNION – For a man with no party, Gary Sukeforth was fielding congratulatory calls from some pretty important people Wednesday.

Sukeforth, 42, of Union, won a three-way race for the open state House District 60 seat Tuesday, defeating a Democrat and Republican.

Sukeforth’s win means that he will join two other independents in the state House: Troy Jackson of Fort Kent unseated Democratic incumbent Marc Michaud by nearly 2-to-1 for a seat representing District 151. And Richard Woodbury of Yarmouth in Cumberland County won in District 44.

Suddenly, people like Secretary of State Dan Gwadosky, Treasurer Dale McCormick and House Speaker Mike Saxl – Democrats, all – were calling Sukeforth on Wednesday, lobbying him for his vote. All three hold jobs that, in Maine, House members vote on.

The district comprises the Knox County towns of Appleton, Hope, Union, Warren and Washington. Sukeforth carried each town except Hope, the hometown of Republican William Jones and Democrat James O’Haverty. The final tally had Sukeforth with 1,786 votes, to 1,412 for Jones and 819 for O’Haverty.

The seat had been held for one term by Republican Richard Crabtree, who did not seek re-election.

Sukeforth, who said he did not run an active campaign, seemed to be pleasantly surprised at his victory, and especially pleased that he ran as he did.

“I’m so glad I did it as an independent,” he said.

Sukeforth believes he took a significant number of votes away from his competitors. The district includes about 1,500 registered Democrats, 2,500 Republicans, and 3,000 unenrolled voters, he said.

While Sukeforth thinks he may have registered for a time as a Democrat and a Republican in his younger days, most of his adult life he has been unenrolled.

“I’m pretty middle-of-the-road,” he said, and compared his political values to those of former U.S. Sens. George Mitchell, a Democrat, and William Cohen, a Republican. Both were seen as moderate and earned voter respect for their stands on issues, he said.

The best explanation Sukeforth can give for his victory is that he earned a positive reputation in the community. He served as a selectman and school board member in Appleton, served on various boards and committees, and, for the past three years, has operated the Common Market, a small grocery store in Union.

“They know me as a person,” he said.

Sukeforth is not optimistic about getting his choice of committee assignments in the Legislature, but that’s OK with him, because he has broad interests: economics and finance, education, local government and agriculture. And having worked for the Department of Transportation for a couple of years, the Transportation Committee also is a possibility, he said.