Former Maine Senate President Justin Alfond announced Friday on Facebook that he was no longer considering a run for governor in 2018.

Alfond, a Portland Democrat and businessman, said in February that he was considering a run, but he bowed out with an explanation posted on social media early Friday.

Alfond, who most recently served as the Senate minority leader, left the Legislature in 2016 because of term limits.

“My time away from Augusta has been reflective and important. Most of all, it’s allowed me to engage with my family more than ever. My son just graduated from pre-K, my daughter just completed swimming through Portland Rec and they both are loving gymnastics,” Alfond wrote in his post. “This has been a special time for my family and me. … After careful consideration, we have decided that a campaign for Governor in 2018 is not the right thing for us at this time.”

Alfond may be best known for helping fend off some of Republican Gov. Paul LePage’s more conservative policy proposals. As Senate president, he also was a frequent target of LePage’s criticism and, occasionally, personal attacks.

The grandson of the late Harold Alfond, a Maine business icon and philanthropist who founded the Dexter Shoe Co., Alfond grew up in Dexter but makes his home in Portland, where he is a partner in Bayside Bowl, among other ventures.

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