Will Neilson, owner of Solo Bistro Bistro in Bath, is in the running for the Democratic Primary for District 53, which includes Woolwich, Dresden, Phippsburg, Arrowsic, Georgetown and part of Richmond.

“I feel like this is where I ought to be,” Neilson said. “I don’t think I have the time to wait. I have amassed certain operative knowledge about the political system in Maine, and I am ready to put it together.” Neilson has been chairman of the Arrowsic Planning Board, and has been involved with that body for eight years. He has also been involved in Democratic politics, both on the Democratic State Committee and the Executive Committee.

His wife, Pia, is a full partner in the business, and is making it possible for him to step away from the restaurant and the wine buying business to concentrate on his run for election and, if he is successful, the Legislature.

Although he respects independents, he said, “To make progress in a democracy you need a party.”

Neilson said he would focus on expanding MaineCare. He has been active on that issue for several years. “Maine is the only state in New England that has seen its economy shrink,” he said. “Health care is the number one economic development engine, and it is something we could fire up tomorrow.”

Neilson says that he is a reasonably persuasive advocate for his positions. “I’m all about communication,” he said. He said he would like to serve on Health and Human Services or Labor, Commerce, Research, and Economic Development.

He is also a champion of early childhood education. “We need to give our kids a strong foundation at the earliest ages,” he said.