York County Commissioner Justin Chenette has been named Maine County Commissioner of the Month for May 2025 in honor of his public service by Spirit of America Foundation’s Maine Chapter.
 
Justin was elected commissioner in 2022 and served a term as the Commission’s Vice Chair. As the first Millennial and openly LGBTQ+ individual ever elected to the York County Commission, Chenette led the effort to pass the first ever Pride Proclamation in the county’s history.
 
On the Commission, he played a pivotal role in historic investments for substance use recovery and first responder training by committing funds and directing the start of construction for two state-of-the-art centers using ARPA money. He also supported efforts for the county to operationalize a regional dredge to protect coastal communities.
 
“The work we do at the county level is meaningful and impactful,” says Chenette. “I share this recognition with my fellow commissioners in our efforts to ensure county level government provides real leadership on big issues like coastal erosion, homelessness, substance use recovery, and public safety.”​

​Our coastline should always demand our full attention. It’s critical that every level of government come together with solutions and actionable steps we can take to protect our homes, livelihoods, and natural resources. That’s exactly what the 6th annual Saco Bay Symposium tackled. Honored to join other government officials, scientists, and educators as a panelist for the discussion around how best Federal, state, local, and county governments can leverage our collective power to yield some good for storm mitigation, dune restoration, sand replenishment, jetty construction, and more.

​Commissioner Justin Chenette said both Ring and Clark make good points and that he has communities in his district that straddle the urban/rural line.

“What I’m missing is the blueprint and analysis … and what that looks like,” Chenette said. “We need the data. I need to see the plan or a draft of what that looks like.”