Democrat candidate attacked for having 'disturbing double life' as an orc assassin in World of Warcraft wins key battleground district

Colleen Lachowicz upset Republican state Sen Tom Martin in Maine



The state Republican party had issued a press release, sent out mailers and set up a web site criticizing her for the 'time-consuming alter-ego'

Ms Lachowicz said she is just one of 183million gamers in America -- and that her hobby has no bearing on her ability to serve

It turns out most voters don't see a history of killing dragons in your free time as an impediment to holding office.



Despite a campaign Maine Democrat state senate candidate Colleen Lachowicz as leading a 'disturbing double life' because she played the video game World of Warcraft, Lachowicz handily won election Tuesday.



Lachowicz took the office with a final vote of 8,666 to 7,753 over incumbent Republican Tom Martin - a huge win despite the small numbers as the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee had named the district one of the country's key battlegrounds.

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Reality vs fantasy: Colleen Lachowicz, the social worker and Democratic candidate for state senate, is pictured left. Her World of Warcraft alter-ego Santiaga, a level 85 orc assassin rouge, is pictured right



Working hard: Ms Lachowicz, center, is a lifelong social worker who has been active in the local Democratic party

As well as being a politically active social worker, Lachowicz is a level 85 orc assassin rouge in the popular gaming community.

Lachowicz has found herself defending her pastime this campaign season, as well as online posts she made under her role-playing alter ego 'Santiaga.'

'In Colleen’s online fantasy world, she gets away with crude, vicious and violent comments like the ones below. Maine needs a State Senator that lives in the real world, not in Colleen’s fantasy world,' reads the website that outed her as a hardcore gamer.



Republicans have also tried to capitalize on Lachowicz's pastime with a mailer sent to voters in Maine's District 25. Her opponent kept his name out of the gaming attacks.



The state party issued a press release calling her pastime a 'disturbing alter-ego.'

The statement says Lachowicz 'has been living a time-consuming double life as a member of the World of Warcraft community... Today, Colleen is playing at level 85 –- the highest level one can attain. Studies have found that the average World of Warcraft gamer is 28 and spends 22.7 hours per week playing.'

Top level: This is the player profile of Ms Lachowicz's character on the game. The Republican party called her hobby a 'time-consuming double life'

Above the fray: Ms Lachowicz's opponent, state Sen Tom Martin, has not weighed in on the issue

The attacks highlight several of the online comments the candidate has made on message boards.

They include:



'So I’m a level 68 orc rogue girl. That means I stab things . . . a lot. Who would have thought that a peace-lovin’, social worker and democrat would enjoy that?!'

'Now if you’ll excuse me, I may have to go and hunt down Grover Norquist and drown him in my bath tub.'

'I like to stab things and I’m originally from NJ…. what’s your f***ing point?!'

'I’m lazy, remember?'

'These are some very bizarre and offensive comments, and they certainly raise questions about Lachowicz’s maturity and her ability to make serious decisions for the people of Senate District 25,' Maine Republican Party spokesman David Sorensen said.

Ms Lachowicz shot back saying that her pastime is not only mainstream -- it's downright common among American households, even career-minded adults.



World of Warcraft, an online game that has players interact with each other in a fantasy land of wizards and warriors, has more than 9.1million subscribers.



With the election finished, she believes the attacks ultimately backfired on Republicans.



'So many people in the district were just appalled,' she told NBC News . 'And a lot of the people I talked to were young, first-time voters and they seemed to be the most incensed by it. They saw it as a personal attack over something that is a normal activity these days — to play video games. And I heard some people say, 'Oh they're saying the same thing about me.''

Ms Lachowicz posted a familiar tune for her fellow gamers Tuesday night - the victory fanfare from Final Fantasy.

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