AUGUSTA – Soon after deciding to stage an independent run for southern Maine’s 1st Congressional District, Dexter Kamilewicz was collecting nomination signatures in Portland when a young man with a serious question confronted him.

“Are you the guy who’s against the war in Iraq?” the man asked.

“Yes, I am,” replied Kamilewicz (pronounced “kam-i-LEH-vitch”).

Questioning the candidate further, the man asked whether Kamilewicz was a veteran – an inquiry that elicited a negative response.

“Then what the hell right do you have to take a stand against the war?” the man asked.

“I have a son in Ramadi,” Kamilewicz calmly told the young man, who almost immediately seemed to understand.

As he recalled that encounter Thursday, Kamilewicz said it was through his son, Ben – a member of the Vermont Army National Guard – that he learned how the war has inflicted devastation and cruelty upon countless Iraqi civilians. The occupation of the country by U.S. forces has become a central theme in the Orr’s Island businessman’s challenge to incumbent U.S. Rep. Tom Allen, a Portland Democrat, and to the Republican candidate, state Rep. Darlene Curley of Scarborough.

Thursday morning, Kamilewicz reiterated his concerns to supporters gathered at the State House to celebrate the delivery of 2,733 petition signatures to the Secretary of State. He easily met the 2,000-signature qualifying threshold, guaranteeing his name will appear on the November ballot.

“The war in Iraq is immoral, illegal and cruel,” Kamilewicz said. “Overwhelmingly, Americans, soldiers and Iraqis want American soldiers out of Iraq.”

The impassioned candidate said he called upon Maine’s congressional delegation in February to join a movement in Congress providing for the immediate recall of troops from Iraq. His failure to persuade politicians on either side of the aisle convinced him that it will require an unenrolled – or independent – candidate to convey what he believes the majority of Americans feel about the war.

“The Congress is guilty of gross neglect of its duty to protect the nation and its citizens,” he said. “It is time to reject false claims that only Democrats and Republicans have the exclusive right to the votes of American citizens.”

Since deciding to run for office, the 61-year-old real estate manager and broker has routinely been getting to bed between midnight and 1 a.m. only to rise at 5 a.m. and start another day of tending to his business while also working on his campaign. Reaching out to supporters via his www.DexterforCongress.org Web site, or appearing on various cable television public access programs and radio talks shows, Kamilewicz has also penned about 20 newspaper columns he hopes will get his message to the masses.

He concedes that with only $15,000 in contributions, money for the campaign is tight. As of April 15, the latest filing deadline with the Federal Election Commission, Allen had raised $475,000 for his re-election bid.

“Yeah, you could call it a shoestring budget I guess,” Kamilewicz said of his own campaign. “But I have an enormous number of people who go out every day and campaign for me. We’re planning on having some district town meetings and we have a lot of other things planned. We’re aiming to be solvent in the fall.”