WASHINGTON – Maine College Republicans have come to Washington in force this weekend to take part in the Conservative Political Action Conference. The 104 Maine students represent the largest delegation at the conference.

“It’s really a great opportunity for our members to get to know each other and also other College Republicans from throughout the country,” said Nate Walton, chairman of the Maine College Republicans for the past seven months.

Walton said Maine brought such a large delegation to the capital partly because the organization is strong, but also because 2006 is a crucial election year back home, with Democratic Gov. John Baldacci in a tenuous position and Democrats controlling the state House of Representatives by only a single vote. The students hope to be invigorated and gain ideas during the conference to help with campaigns back home.

The delegation includes students from all over the state, from Bowdoin College in Brunswick to Husson College in Bangor to the University of Maine at Presque Isle. All 104 students had a quick meet-and-greet and a photo opportunity with Maine’s two Republican senators, Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, on Thursday on the Capitol steps. Collins echoed Walton’s desires for a party switch in both branches of state government.

The American Conservative Union hosts the annual gathering, the largest of conservative activists in the country. The Maine students will hear speeches by Vice President Dick Cheney, United Nations Ambassador John Bolton and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich.

Acknowledging that students and professors at universities and colleges in Maine are predominantly liberal-minded – just as they are around the country – Walton said such liberal dominance has served only to make his organization stronger.

“I think that one of the reasons that our organization is so strong is that we are constantly being challenged on views and being questioned about them,” he said. “It really makes our members know what they believe in very strongly, and we’re here to fight for those values.”

Shanna Moody, a 20-year-old physical therapy student from Husson College, said she had some problems last semester with her ethics teacher, whose teachings leaned to the left a little too much for Moody’s liking.

“She would just make comments like she contrasted Republicans and vegetarians,” Moody said. “I was like, ‘Uh, what does that mean?'”

Husson’s administration is fairly GOP-friendly, according to Jared Grover, vice president of the Husson College Republicans. Grover said the college’s president, William H. Beardsley, is very supportive of the Republican organization on campus.

“Our president is a strong conservative, a nice guy, really encouraging, and he really backs us,” said the 27-year-old LaGrange native. “Every time I talk to him he asks how things are going and what we’re going to be doing.”

According to members of its College Republicans organization, the University of Maine at Presque Isle is less supportive of conservatives on campus.

Though the chapter received financial aid from the student senate for the trip to Washington, the young Republicans have faced challenges because of their political leanings from their more liberal peers.

“Our signs are taken down and Democrats obviously hate us, but you know that’s natural,” said Tyler Clark, a 20-year-old Easton native who is majoring in business management at UMPI.

Clark joked that despite some problems with campus Democrats there had been no “death threats or anything.”

“Not yet,” interjected Brandon Marquis, vice chairman of the Presque Isle College Republicans and Clark’s hometown friend.