With key races up and down the ballot, Maine voters turn out for Election Day

This Election Day, Maine residents are considering a lot on their ballots, from local initiatives to statewide elections, including several races with national stakes. 

More than 290,000 Mainers have already cast a ballot, surpassing early voting numbers during the last midterm election in 2022 and approaching those from the 2024 presidential contest.

It’s possible that the outcome of some of the state’s most closely-watched races won’t be known for at least a week, according to Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who said it’s likely some federal elections will be determined by a ranked-choice runoff.

Meanwhile, election officials across the country are bracing for possible federal interference, with the Trump administration already involved in lawsuits in California and Alaska, and preparing to persevere through any instability.

State courthouses in Portland, Bangor and Augusta will remain open until 9 p.m. Tuesday to accept emergency filings related to the election. 

Federal election monitors will be in Portland, South Portland and Lewiston Tuesday as part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s plan to send 1,000 monitors to locations in all 50 states. 

Have a question about a specific race? Want to know where a candidate stands on an issue, or how to find your polling place? Check out Maine Morning Star’s Voter Guide.

Federal races

The most high profile race in Maine this cycle is for the U.S. Senate, as Democrat Troy Jackson takes on incumbent Republican Susan Collins. 

It’s not the ticket voters expected to see even six months ago, after Graham Platner blew onto the political scene and overwhelmingly won the Democratic primary in June. But, following sexual assault allegations that he denies, Platner dropped out and Jackson quickly replaced him as the Democratic nominee. 

Voters are also reckoning with Collins’ alleged involvement in a pay-for-play scheme, first reported by ProPublican in September. 

It’s unclear how much the accusations will influence voters. Last month, several people said they were unsurprised and unmoved, with ​​most voters firmly aligned with their chosen party, while some swing voters said they are reconsidering their support of the senior senator — a key bloc in Collins’ 2020 win.

Across four debates last month, Jackson and Collins faced off over an extensive list of issues, ranging from energy prices to gun rights to the future of democracy. 

Both candidates made final appeals to voters this weekend. Collins emphasized her track record of bringing federal funds back to Maine for local projects, while Jackson highlighted Collins’ votes in support of President Donald Trump’s agenda. 

Democrats view Collins’ seat as a key pickup opportunity in their efforts to gain more control in the U.S. Senate, and they’re hoping time has run out on the senior senator’s staying power, given the Trump administration’s increasing unpopularity. 

Collins, Jackson make their closing appeals in Maine’s pivotal US Senate race

Polls have shown that race to be close, with the Cook Political Report deeming it one of seven toss-up Senate races. If that holds true, the results may not be known for days. With six declared write-in candidates, Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said last month that the Senate election will likely go to a ranked-choice runoff. To avoid the runoff, Collins or Jackson must get more than 50% of total votes. 

It’s a similar situation in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, where Republican Paul LePage and Democrat Matt Dunlap are fighting to replace Democratic Rep. Jared Golden in the U.S. House of Representatives. 

There is one declared write-in candidate in that race, so if Dunlap or LePage don’t get more than 50% of votes, the district will also see a ranked-choice runoff. 

It wouldn’t be an unprecedented situation for the 2nd District. In 2018, Golden defeated incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin in the nation’s first congressional election to use ranked choice voting to determine the winner. Since then, Golden has repeatedly defended his seat through the runoff process, mostly recently in the 2024 election against Republican Austin Theriault, which went to a ranked-choice runoff and then a recount.

Golden announced last November that he would not seek reelection. LePage had already announced his campaign, and faced no Republican primary challengers. Dunlap had intended to challenge Golden, and went on to defeat three other candidates in a ranked-choice runoff in the June primary. 

The race is among those that will determine which party will hold a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, and party leaders have watched the campaigns closely in the lead up to the election. In September, the Cook Political Report shifted its rating in Democrats favor, ultimately rating the district as leaning Republican.

Neither candidate seeking to replace Golden has tried to emulate his unique relationship with his party. Instead, the former governor has campaigned hard on the backing of national GOP leaders. And while Dunlap is more progressive than Golden on many issues, the national Democratic Party was slow to back him, and Dunlap hasn’t embraced their support on the campaign trail.

Not as contentious as the other congressional races is Maine’s 1st District, where Republican Ron Russell is again challenging incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree. 

It’s a rematch for the two candidates, who faced off in 2024, when Pingree had a decisive victory over Russell. 

The pair met for one debate last week, and squared off over healthcare, Social Security and the Iran War. Although it’s been a quiet campaign trail for both candidates this year, they have made their primary disagreement clear: Russell’s support of and Pingree’s opposition to Trump’s agenda in Congress. 

The Cook Political Report had rated the district solidly Democratic in the lead-up to the election.

State races 

Mainers will also be voting on who will succeed Gov. Janet Mills in the Blaine House. With the two-term Democrat terming out, three candidates are vying to replace her: Democrat Hannah Pingree, Republican Bobby Charles and independent Rick Bennett. 

In the final days before the election, all three candidates made a final pitch to voter,in a manner that mirrored their individual campaign styles: Bennett focused on meeting voters where they’re at, Pingree highlighted her prominent endorsements, and Charles went on the offensive, challenging critics to debate him on stage at the Auburn Mall.

Pingree, considered the frontrunner in the race, has raised more money than both of her opponents combined. According to reports filed with the Maine Ethics Commission, the Democrat raised more than $4.9 million. Charles has raised just over $2 million, and Bennett has raised slightly below a million dollars.

The entire state Legislature is also up for election, and the results will determine the balance of the parties under the new governor. 

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Democrats currently hold narrow majorities in both chambers. The Maine Senate has 20 Democrats, 14 Republicans and one independent, Rick Bennett, who unenrolled from the Maine GOP in June 2025. In the Maine House of Representatives, Democrats hold 75 seats to Republicans’ 73, with one independent and two unenrolled members.

The nonpartisan newsletter Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics released its final analysis of state legislative races earlier this month. Senior columnist Louis Jacobson marked the Maine Senate as likely to remain in Democratic control while the Maine House is considered leaning Democratic, with Jacobson naming it one of the 15 most competitive legislative chambers in the country. 

And outside groups — that don’t have to disclose their donors — have spent big in legislative races. According to data from the Maine Ethics Commission as of Thursday, outside groups spent roughly $4.6 million in state elections.

The number of unenrolled candidates running in legislative races this year is higher than it’s been in at least a decade, with 19 vying for the Maine House and seven for Senate.

Several unenrolled candidates said they ran as independents because of increasing polarization, and voters’ desires to distance themselves from it. But despite the message they’re campaigning on, not all independents are truly unaffiliated, with some receiving the financial backing of partisan groups. 

There are also additional races for local and county positions — like the Cumberland County district attorney and the Hancock County sheriff — and ballot questions, which range from restrictions on syringe service programs to bans on data centers and Flock cameras. 

Maine Morning Star reporters Eesha Pendharkar and Emma Davis contributed to this report.