View source for Dale Crafts

{{Short description|American politician and businessman}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|name         = Dale Crafts
|office       = Member of the [[Maine House of Representatives]]
|constituency = 104th district (2008–2014)<br>56th district (2014–2016)
|term_start   = December 3, 2008
|term_end     = December 7, 2016
|predecessor  = Robert Berube
|successor    = [[Gina Mason]]
|birth_name   =  Dale John Crafts
|birth_date   = {{birth date and age|1958|12|14}}
|birth_place  = [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida]], [[U.S.]]
|death_date   =
|death_place  =
|party        = [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
}}
'''Dale John Crafts'''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/19597/dale-crafts|title=Vote Smart &#124; Facts For All|website=Vote Smart}}</ref> (born December 14, 1958) is an American politician and businessman. He has started a number of businesses, including Mobility Plus, which helps people with disabilities drive more easily. Crafts was on the [[Lisbon, Maine]] Town Council before winning election to the [[Maine House of Representatives]], where he served from 2008 to 2016.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=795226|title=Our Campaigns - ME State House 056 Race - Nov 04, 2014|website=www.ourcampaigns.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=457331|title=Our Campaigns - ME State House 104 Race - Nov 04, 2008|website=www.ourcampaigns.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=760897|title=Our Campaigns - ME State House 104 Race - Nov 06, 2012|website=www.ourcampaigns.com}}</ref>
In 2020, Crafts was the Republican nominee in his unsuccessful bid against [[Jared Golden]] for the [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. House]] in [[Maine's 2nd congressional district]]. He has been [[Paraplegia|paralyzed]] from the waist down since the age of 25, when he was hit by a driver while riding his motorcycle.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Mannino |first1=Gabrielle |title=Paraplegic US House candidate Dale Crafts skydives for veterans |url=https://www.abc10.com/article/news/politics/paraplegic-us-house-candidate-dale-crafts-skydives-for-veterans/97-d1442d9e-03eb-4002-8062-2449964ea5f8 |accessdate=30 September 2020 |work=abc10.com |agency=Associated Press |date=September 18, 2020}}</ref>
==Early life and family==
Crafts was born in [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida]], and raised in [[Lisbon Falls, Maine]].
Crafts' cousins: [[Garrett Mason]], [[Gina Mason]], and [[Rick Mason]] also served in the [[Maine Legislature]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.votesmart.org/candidate/biography/19597/dale-crafts|title=Votesmart.org.-Dale J. Crafts|access-date=2017-09-08|archive-date=2018-12-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181202175310/https://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/19597/dale-crafts|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://legislature.maine.gov/house/house/|title=Maine House of Representatives|website=legislature.maine.gov}}</ref><ref>'Maine Senate leader's mom running for House seat,' [[Bangor Daily News]], Christopher Cousins, February 29, 2016</ref><ref>'Late Maine lawmaker's husband will succeed her in Lisbon seat,' '''Bangor Daily News (Maine),''' Michael Shepherd, November 7, 2017</ref>
==Business career==
After he was paralyzed in a motorcycle accident at age 25, Crafts started a company called Mobility Plus, which helps people with disabilities drive more easily.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Panetta |first1=Grace |title=Jared Golden and Dale Crafts square off in Maine's 2nd Congressional District |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/maine-2nd-house-district-election-jared-golden-dale-crafts-2020 |accessdate=30 September 2020 |work=Business Insider |date=August 28, 2020}}</ref> Crafts has started a number of other businesses, including a self-storage business.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hirschkorn |first1=Phil |title=Republican Dale Crafts, former Maine state legislator, eyes seat in Congress |url=https://www.wmtw.com/article/republican-dale-crafts-former-maine-state-legislator-eyes-seat-in-congress/32949667 |accessdate=30 September 2020 |work=WMTW |date=23 June 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
==2020 U.S. House election==
Crafts became the Republican nominee for [[Maine's 2nd congressional district]] in [[2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Maine|2020]] after defeating realtor Adrienne Bennett and former [[Maine State Senate|state Senator]] [[Eric Brakey]] in a three-way primary election. President [[Donald Trump]] endorsed Crafts on August 1, 2020. As [[Maine]] uses [[Ranked-choice voting in the United States|ranked-choice voting]], he was in first place with just under 46% of the vote in the first round. In the second round, he won with 58.5% of the vote.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ballotpedia.org/Dale_Crafts|title=Dale Crafts|website=Ballotpedia}}</ref> He faced [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] incumbent [[Jared Golden]] in the [[2020 Maine elections|general election]]. On November 3, 2020, Golden won reelection with 53% of the vote to Crafts' 47%.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-11-03|title=Statewide and town-by-town Maine results for Election 2020|url=https://www.centralmaine.com/2020/11/03/2020-election-results/|access-date=2021-01-01|website=Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel}}</ref>
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
* {{official website|https://dalecraftsforcongress.com}}
* [https://ballotpedia.org/Dale_Crafts Profile at Ballotpedia]
{{s-start}}
{{s-par|us-me-hs}}
{{s-bef|before=Robert Berube}}
{{s-ttl|title=Member of the [[Maine House of Representatives]]<br>from the 104th district|years=2008–2014}}
{{s-aft|after=Raymond Wallace}}
|-
{{s-bef|before=[[Corey Wilson]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=Member of the [[Maine House of Representatives]]<br>from the 56th district|years=2014–2016}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Gina Mason]]}}
{{s-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crafts, Dale}}
[[Category:1958 births]]
[[Category:21st-century American businesspeople]]
[[Category:21st-century American legislators]]
[[Category:Businesspeople from Maine]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Maine city council members]]
[[Category:Republican Party members of the Maine House of Representatives]]
[[Category:People from Lisbon, Maine]]
[[Category:Politicians from Fort Lauderdale, Florida]]
[[Category:Politicians with paraplegia]]
[[Category:American politicians with disabilities]]
[[Category:Candidates in the 2020 United States House of Representatives elections]]
{{Maine-politician-stub}}