PORTLAND – James Erwin, a former Maine attorney general who twice ran unsuccessfully for governor, died Thursday, two days after suffering a stroke. Erwin was 84 years old.

A leading figure in the Maine Republican Party, Erwin served in both the state House and Senate before winning three terms as attorney general from 1967 through ’72.

Erwin ran for governor in 1970, but lost by 500 votes to Democratic incumbent Kenneth Curtis. Four years later, he lost again, that time in a three-way race that was won by independent James Longley. Democrat George Mitchell finished second.

After his second Blaine House loss, Erwin returned to his law practice in York, where he remained for the next 30 years.

Erwin was remembered by political associates as a fiscal conservative, moderate on social issues and dedicated environmentalist. He established the environmental division of the Attorney General’s Office and was involved in the creation of the Allagash Wilderness Waterway.

Prominent Maine Republicans mourned Erwin’s death.

“He was a very great gentleman,” said Robert A.G. Monks of Cape Elizabeth, who described Erwin as “a very principled politician” who was never known for negative attacks during campaigns.

U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe and her husband, former Gov. John McKernan, called Erwin “an honorable man and a public servant of the highest caliber.”

McKernan, also a former congressman, noted that the first political campaign he worked on was Erwin’s gubernatorial race in 1970, when he served as Erwin’s driver. Snowe said she held an informal gathering in support of his candidacy that year.

“We saw firsthand how deeply he cared about the people of Maine and building an even brighter future for our state,” said Snowe.

Erwin was born in New York City and grew up in Englewood, N.J. He spent his summers on his mother’s family’s farm in South Berwick, which is now the site of Berwick Academy. He graduated from Dartmouth College and served in the Army during World War II.