The voters in the state's 2nd Congressional District have a choice in this election, but not much of one.

Incumbent Democrat Mike Michaud, a former Millinocket paper mill worker, is running for his fourth term. A long-time union member, a conservative Blue Dog Democrat with anti-abortion leanings and a man imbued with rural, workingman's values, Michaud has carved a niche for himself in Congress advocating for veterans and economic development projects for the far-flung communities of his district, which is the largest district east of the Mississippi.

Michaud is neither eloquent nor flashy. He's a nuts-and-bolts politician who takes care of the practical needs of his district and leaves the political philosophizing to others.

While he's no Margaret Chase Smith, he has done a reasonable job representing his constituents and they have returned the favor: In the last campaign, he won with 71 percent of the vote against a Republican sacrificial lamb, Scott D'Amboise.

But, as firm believers that dialog makes democracy stronger, we were pleased when Farmington resident John Frary, a former history professor in New Jersey and a conservative Republican, announced he would challenge Michaud.

We know Frary -- he was a columnist for this paper until we parted on less-than-friendly terms -- and as one-time targets of his florid wit, we looked forward to what could have been a very lively and interesting race.

But we've been disappointed.

Frary is guilty of the cardinal sin of politics: ignoring the voters. In his glee at, and zeal for, attacking Michaud (he has "no brain") and the "sociopaths" in Congress, Frary forgot that the primary role of a candidate and legislator is actually to represent others, not merely himself. While there was theatrical value in his campaign, there was little civic virtue. The words poured out of Frary, but they were neither as funny as we would have liked nor as substantive as they should have been.

It's a shame.

Underneath our superficial delight at the prospect of Frary's colorful challenge to Michaud was a more solid reason to anticipate the race: the hope that Frary, a well-educated academic, could provide a legitimate and thoughtful alternative to Michaud's often automatic support for labor and traditional Democratic positions.

Yet in the end, Frary marginalized himself with his non-stop vitriol. He didn't offer real meat, he just offered gravy. And Michaud, in his trademark monotone, stumped the district offering real, if rather colorless, answers to people's problems.

So paradoxically, the aw-shucks country guy, Mike Michaud, turns out to have trumped the fancy professor when it comes to ideas.

Advantage Michaud -- the incumbent congressman gets our endorsement for re-election in Maine's 2nd Congressional District.