By Willis Johnson

Jim Longley shocked everyone when he singlehandedly upset the two major political parties to become the first Independent governor of Maine in 1975. As an Amazon reviewer puts it, Longley “was way in over his head when it came to governance …. [Willis] Johnson’s book is sarcastic, informative and very funny.” 

Recent Maine Governor Paul LePage is often compared to Longley—both abrasive and dismissive, both businessmen in the role of politician. Reading about Longley today in the age of President Trump is shockingly eerie because of the similarities between the two men and their methods of operation and response.

PLEASE NOTE: The book was published in 1978 and was not printed on acid-free paper, so all copies show slight signs of aging.

Around Christmas [2020], I read [The Year of the Longley]. In fact, I couldn’t put it down.

Written by Willis Johnson, a former AP reporter and speech writer for Gov. Ken Curtis (who preceded Longley), it’s a witty, sometimes snarky account of Longley’s tenure. To hear Johnson tell it, Longley was temperamentally unsuited for the job—thin-skinned and given to bullying—and unwilling to retreat from business conflicts of interest.

Sound familiar?

Actually, Longley comes off as a more temperate version of Paul LePage, with none of Donald Trump’s populist charisma. I now know why Angus King [Maine’s independent governor, 1995-2003] took pains to differentiate himself from Longley.

—Tom Groening, Editor, The Working Waterfront