LEWISTON — You can measure the level of enthusiasm among a group by the number of heads nodding at any given time.

At the University of South Maine’s Lewiston-Auburn College on Thursday night, there were nods aplenty. A few eye rolls, too.

It was the State Legislature Candidates’ Forum, in which 15 political hopefuls sat before a group of four dozen people who came to grill them.

The nodding and eye-rolling began almost immediately, as the audience came at the panel with question after question on matters of income taxes, welfare, energy and the rising cost of education.

The session ground on for more than two hours. When it was over, some disagreements had been smoothed out while others lingered. A few had made their political decisions based on what they had heard from the candidates.

“I think there was a lot of skirting going on,” said USM student Richard Wood. “But some of them kept it real. Some of them jumped right in with no bull and that helped me make some decisions.”

All the pressure was on the candidates. Seated together at the front of the room, they fielded questions from the crowd while occasionally jabbing at one another.

All part of the political process, according to some.

“It didn’t bother me at all,” said Rep. Michael Beaulieu, R-Auburn. “It’s not so bad as long as you know what you’re going to be dealing with. I enjoyed myself.”

Others felt the same. The session allowed them to mix it up more, to expand on their positions more than they are able to in some formats. The result was lively discussion rather than fast, monosyllabic answers to complex questions.

“You know what?” mused Rep. Peggy Rotundo, D-Lewiston. “I liked it. I like being able to answer questions for the public and to defend my votes. I appreciate that we had enough time to do that.”

The meeting was over when Rotundo made that statement, but there was still nodding going on. Sen. Deborah Simpson, D-Auburn, agreed with her colleague.

“We get to discuss the issues more in-depth,” she said, “rather than be limited to 30-second sound bites.”

The discussions were mostly civil. The only hint of rancor came at the end of the meeting, as the group discussed the cost of welfare. A few candidates, Republican Joel Kase among them, believe that the level of fraud within the system is higher than statistics show. Others, like his opponent Sen. Margaret Craven, D-Lewiston, pointed out that many tales of fraud are based on unsubstantiated rumor.

In its way, the meeting had its informal side. Each candidate was allowed 3 minutes to introduce himself or herself as the forum got started. Those in the audience learned things they may not have known. Which candidate calls his wife “sweetheart,” for instance. Who drives a truck with really bad mileage, who runs a dairy farm and who went last because he was 10 minutes late.

The “sweetheart” in question was Paula Beaulieu, wife of Michael. And though she might be slanted politically, she appreciated the back and forth between candidates and those they might serve.

“I wish more people had come,” she said. “Instead of talking amongst themselves, they could be here asking questions and giving answers. This is a prime opportunity.”

Some questions were broad. How would you try to reduce energy costs? What can be done to protect the health of the Androscoggin River? How can we attract new business to the state and make sure there are plenty of educated folks in the local work force?

The answers were often murky. Nothing solid, just opinions from the candidates and defense of earlier votes.

“This was a chance for us to explain some things,” Rotundo said. “A chance to explain why some things aren’t so easy to solve. It was fun to hear all the different opinions expressed.”

mlaflamme@sunjournal.com

The candidates in attendance

Larry Sirois, District 96

Michael Beaulieu, District 68

Michael Scott, District 20

Stacy Dostie, District 75

John Nutting, District 17

Margaret Craven, District 16

Joel Case, District, 16

Richard Wagner, District 73

Michael McLellan, District 103

Michel Lajoie, District 21

Brian Bolduc, District 69

Bruce Bickford, District 70

Deborah Simpson, District 15

Peggy Rotundo, District 74

Michael Carey, District 72