AUBURN — The two candidates for Register of Probate of Androscoggin County are looking to bring some stability to an office where the last three elected officials all resigned before completing their terms.

Joanna Said of Livermore and Thomas Reynolds of Lewiston are seeking to replace current probate register Joshua Klein-Golden, who was appointed to the position by Gov. Paul LePage in March to fill one of those vacancies.

The governor selected Said, 52, a Livermore resident, to fill another vacancy in 2014 and she served eight months until the following election. 

That experience, she said, taught her the importance of having a professional and compassionate person in that position. The probate register must deal with the public on such sensitive issues as wills, trusts, adoptions and guardianships.

“The ladies who work in that office and the public who utilize it need someone to be an advocate who cares,” Said said. “I have a lot of passion for being that person.” 

Said has worked in social services with adults with development disabilities. She is also the treasurer of the Androscoggin County Republican Party.

Reynolds, 52, a community organizer and president of the Androscoggin County Democratic Party, stepped forward to run after Ira Bittues withdrew from the race last summer.

Saying he has “a keen appreciation of the probate court,” Reynolds believes his work as an organizer and performing title searches have given him the experience to understand law and follow procedures.

Androscoggin County is the only county in Maine whose Register of Probate is a part-time position. Klein-Golden, who has brought some stability to the office in his short time at the helm, has said the workload can easily support a full-time register.

Said agreed, saying she was regularly working 30-plus hours a week in the probate office in a job that pays $17,000. The two clerks in the office earn nearly twice that much.

Reynolds isn’t ready to commit to supporting a bid to make the position full time.

“I want to see if it is something that is all or nothing with the current staff,” Reynolds said. “I would want to hear from the staff. Could it be maybe just 20 or 30 hours to provide services to the citizens of Androscoggin County.”

ssherlock@sunjournal.com