Portland, Maine Mayoral Debate

Portland Press Herald Audio

Portland mayoral hopefuls debate homelessness, climate change Much of the debate between Pious Ali, Justin Costa, Mark Dion, Dylan Pugh and Andrew Zarro focused on the homeless encampments that the city has struggled to manage.

Five candidates vying to become Portland’s next mayor sparred Tuesday, October 3 over the city’s top challenges, including homeless encampments, housing, immigration and climate change, during a 90-minute debated hosted by the Portland Press Herald and the University of New England.

Much of the focus on the debate, which drew about 260 people to UNE’s Innovation Hall, was on the efforts to deal with homeless encampments throughout the city. The debate was moderated by Press Herald reporters Grace Benninghoff and Rachel Ohm.