Rep. Golden to Seek Re-Election

Hoping to prevail in Maine's Trump-favored 2nd District

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Attributed to News Center Maine

Four-term Maine US Rep. Jared Golden (D-Lewiston), amid speculation that he might run for Governor or possibly the US Senate against his former boss, Sen. Susan Collins (R), yesterday announced that he will seek a fifth term in the House next year.

Earlier in the year, Rep. Golden was circumspect about his political plans not only acknowledging that he was considering a statewide bid, but also that he might retire outright from elective politics.

Next year, it appears he will face former two-term Gov. Paul LePage (R), who again returned from living in Florida to announce for public office in Maine. In 2022, Mr. LePage unsuccessfully challenged Gov. Janet Mills (D). Earlier this month, Mr. LePage announced that he would enter the 2nd Congressional District race next year. 

Rep. Golden had a close call in 2024, winning a Ranked Choice Voting re-election with only 50.3% of the vote over retired NASCAR driver and then-state Representative Austin Theriault. It was presumed that Mr. Theriault would run again, but he has since stated that he will not and endorsed Mr. LePage. The former Governor carried the 2nd District in all of his gubernatorial runs, even in ‘22 when he lost the statewide count to Gov. Mills by 13 percentage points.

Maine’s 2nd District encompasses most of the state’s geographic area and has the largest land mass of any CD east of the Mississippi River. ME-2 is also the most Republican seat in the nation that elects a Democrat to the House of Representatives.  According to Dave’s Redistricting App statisticians, the 2nd has a 52.9R – 41.2D partisan lean. President Trump has carried the 2nd District in all three of his national runs, winning the last two races with percentage margins of 53-44% (2024) and 52-45% (2020).

With Rep. Golden out of the Governor’s race, Democrats will still see a crowded open primary since Gov. Mills is ineligible to seek a third term. Those party members officially announced for Governor include Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, businessman Angus King, III, son of Sen. Angus King (I-ME), and former state Senate President Troy Jackson who hails from Maine’s far northern tier. Expected to soon enter is former state House Speaker Hannah Pingree, daughter of US Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-North Haven/Portland). 

For the Republicans, former Assistant US Secretary of State Bobby Charles, ex-local official Robert Wessels, and businessman Owen McCarthy are the announced candidates.

Despite the Republican trends exhibited in the 2nd CD, Rep. Golden has been able to prevail in his House races, partially due to the Ranked Choice Voting system that applies for Maine’s federal races and primaries outside of the national presidential campaign.  Counting the post-RCV rounds as his final tally, Rep. Golden has averaged 51.7% of the cumulative vote for his entire congressional career. 

With the House partisan division at 220R – 215D, counting the two vacant Democratic seats that will be filled later in the year, Maine’s 2nd District, with its favorable Republican voting history outside of the US House race, will become a major national GOP conversion target. Any seat the Republicans can gain from the Democratic column will go a long way toward sustaining the party’s small majority.

The Golden-LePage race is guaranteed to be close with both candidates being popular with the 2nd District constituency. Winning this race could well be a precursor to which party clinches the next US House majority.  

Jim Ellis is a 35-year veteran of politics at the state and national levels. He has served ss executive director for two national political action committees, as well as a consultant to the three national Republican Party organizations in DC, the National Federation of Independent Business, and various national conservative groups.

Born and raised in Sacramento, California, he earned a B. A. in Political Science from the University of California at Davis in 1979. Jim raised his daughter, Jacqueline, alone after his wife died following a tragic car accident. He helped establish the Joan Ellis Victims Assistance Network in Rochester, NH. Jim also is a member of the Northern Virginia Football Officials Association, which officiates high school games throughout the region.

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