EDITOR'S NOTE - This reporting comes from Spectrum News and Syracuse University's Newhouse School's partnership.

By: Lucy Shaffer 

CAMDEN, M.E. - Camden, Maine, is a tranquil coastal town with a population of around 5,000. But even this quiet community cannot escape the Senate race drawing national attention.

William Garyanderson, owner of Lily, Lupine and Fern, has run his shop on Main Street for the last 38 years. It's a popular stop for wine, cheese and flowers among Camden locals. He's voting for Collins.

"I'm looking for a senator, somebody who puts America first, puts our troops first and our people. I want to go back to GFC. God, family and country," Garyanderson said. "I don't want to see people burn the American flag. Too many guys came home with flags on their coffins. She's the lesser of the two evils. Just put it that way."

He says Camden leans left and his Republican views can sometimes hurt business.

"I'm probably going to kill my business in this town. People boycott it anyway," Garyanderson said.

But he won't let that drive him away.

"I've been here for 38 years and I'm not going to run away from anybody," Garyanderson said. "I treat everybody the same. I give good service. It has nothing to do with politics."

Just a few doors down, Keenan Boscoe has spent the last six years selling handmade stationery crafted by local Maine artists.

"I have early-voted for Troy Jackson. I think his experience as a logger and a union leader really appealed to me in terms of representing everyday people and keeping the interests of small businesses in mind, as opposed to at the expense of big corporations," Boscoe said.

He says Camden's strong locally owned business community is one of the things he appreciates about living there.

"Camden is actually very unique," Boscoe said. "I think having that small fabric of all these stores, whenever I spend my money, knowing that it stays in Camden is what allows our economy to do so well."

Along Main Street, business owners have their own reasons for supporting Collins or Jackson. Down at the harbor, the focus shifts from politics to the future of the community.

Steven Pixley has served as Camden's harbormaster for the last 25 years. He knows the town by heart and is a familiar face to its residents.

"The change that we need is for the people's voices to be heard and to be listened to," Pixley said. "Whoever wins, we have a lot of work to do on a national and state level."

Pixley believes that regardless of the outcome, Camden and the country face challenges that will require people to work together.

"I can take a group that usually doesn't get along with another group and say, yeah, you are going to get along and here's why," Pixley said.

For these Camden residents, the election may divide their political views, but it doesn't change what they share: a town, a community and a place they call home.