Growth eludes western Maine Jobs, wages and the economy are the major issues in western Maine, pollsters find. Some fear the lack of jobs will lower youths' expectations.
Charts Click on each subject to see a summary of the polling data.
To top of story Michelle McIntire, a former shoe worker from nearby Wilton, is not surprised. You can't make a decent living up here. Education was the top state issue for 13 percent of the region's residents, followed by the environment for 10 percent and health care for 9 percent. Concerns about jobs and the economy were even more apparent when western Maine residents were asked about issues in their community. Thirty percent of those polled in the region said jobs, wages or the economy were the leading issue in the cities or towns where they lived.