In a move that has electrified Maine’s political landscape and set the stage for one of the most closely watched Senate contests of 2026, Governor Janet Mills, a two-term Democrat and the state’s first female governor, formally announced her campaign to unseat longtime Republican Senator Susan Collins on October 14, 2025. The decision, which came after months of speculation and encouragement from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, positions Mills at the center of a heated Democratic primary and a broader national battle for control of the Senate.
Mills, 77, enters the race with a formidable résumé and the backing of key establishment figures. She has served as Maine’s attorney general and district attorney before winning the governorship in 2018 and securing re-election in 2022 by a comfortable margin over former Republican Governor Paul LePage. If elected, she would become the oldest freshman senator in American history—a fact not lost on her critics but one her supporters say underscores her experience and resilience.
Her campaign launch video wasted no time in drawing a sharp contrast with both President Donald Trump and Senator Collins. Mills recounted a tense February 2025 meeting at the White House, where Trump threatened to cut federal funding to Maine unless the state complied with his executive order barring transgender women from competing in women’s sports. “We’ll see you in court,” Mills retorted, according to multiple reports. She later told voters, “I’ve never backed down from a bully and I never will. Donald Trump is ripping away health care from millions, driving up costs, and giving corporate CEOs massive tax cuts. And Susan Collins is helping him.”
Mills’s record as governor includes expanding Medicaid coverage and standing up for abortion access—accomplishments her allies say prove she delivers results for Mainers. Jessica Mackler of EMILY’s List praised Mills as “someone with backbone and grit, someone who has proven she will fight Trump head on and defeat him when he tries to hurt Maine.” Her allies also point out that she has twice won statewide elections with more than 50 percent of the vote, a testament to her ability to unite the state’s diverse electorate.
Yet Mills’s path to the general election is far from clear. The Democratic primary field is crowded and fiercely competitive, featuring a new generation of candidates who argue that the party needs fresh voices and bold ideas. Chief among them is Graham Platner, a 41-year-old U.S. Marine and Army veteran and oyster farmer. Platner has quickly gained traction by focusing on economic populism and the concerns of working-class Mainers. Since launching his campaign in August, he has raised over $4 million and hosted more than 20 town halls across the state, according to his campaign.
Platner enjoys the enthusiastic support of Senator Bernie Sanders, who recently headlined a campaign rally for him and has been vocal in his criticism of Mills’s candidacy. “Graham Platner is a great working-class candidate for Senate in Maine who will defeat Susan Collins,” Sanders declared on social media. He added, “It’s disappointing that some Democratic leaders are urging Governor Mills to run. We need to focus on winning that seat and not waste millions on an unnecessary and divisive primary.”
Platner himself has welcomed the competition, stating, “Everywhere I hear the same thing: people are ready for change. They know the system is broken and they know that politicians who have been working in the system for years, like Susan Collins, are not going to fix it.” Youth-focused groups and progressive organizations have echoed this sentiment, arguing that Platner represents a vital step toward re-engaging disillusioned young and working-class voters. David Hogg, president of Leaders We Deserve, said, “After our historic loss in the 2024 election, conversations within the Democratic Party have rightly centered on age, the loss of young men, the working class, and the growing disillusionment of young voters. As our party charts a path forward, Graham Platner represents not the entire solution, but a vital step in the right direction.”
The primary also features other notable contenders, including Dan Kleban, co-founder of Maine Beer Company; Jordan Wood, a former congressional staffer who raised roughly $3 million in the third quarter of 2025; fashion designer Natasha Alcala; military veteran and former Pentagon policy writer David Evans; former Army veteran Tucker Favreau; University of Maine professor Andrea LaFlamme; and Daira Smith-Rodriguez, a former Air Force contracting officer. Independent candidate Phil Rench, a former senior engineer at SpaceX, is also in the mix, adding further complexity to the race.
Political observers in Maine and beyond are watching the Democratic primary with keen interest, viewing it as a microcosm of the broader ideological and generational tensions within the party. James Melcher, a political science professor at the University of Maine at Farmington, remarked, “I think a lot of Democrats in Maine feel like a conversation is needed about what direction will be taken in the future, and I think a lot of people all over the spectrum of the Democratic Party don’t think a primary would be a bad thing.” Yet he cautioned that Mills is “not a slam-dunk certain-winner by any stretch.”
On the other side of the aisle, Republicans see opportunity in the Democratic infighting. Joanna Rodriguez, spokesperson for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, argued, “Maine Democrats are locked in a bruising fight between Chuck Schumer’s out-of-touch establishment and Bernie Sanders’ far-left radicals. Janet Mills wants to be the oldest freshman Senator in American history after a record of failure that turned Maine into one of the weakest economies in New England. No matter which Democrat emerges, we’re confident Mainers will continue to trust independent problem solver Susan Collins to keep delivering for them.”
Senator Collins, 72, is seeking her sixth term and currently chairs the influential Senate Appropriations Committee. Known as a moderate Republican, she has at times broken with her party—most notably voting to convict Trump in his second impeachment trial and criticizing the administration’s handling of federal worker layoffs. Collins narrowly won re-election in 2020, despite polls showing her trailing, and has long been regarded as a formidable campaigner with deep roots in Maine politics.
Democrats, however, see her seat as uniquely vulnerable. Maeve Coyle, a spokesperson for the Senate Democrats’ campaign arm, stated, “Susan Collins is uniquely vulnerable and her deep unpopularity is driven by her record of selling out Mainers—from being a decisive vote for the justices who overturned Roe v. Wade to working to enact Trump’s damaging agenda that hurts Mainers. In 2026, Democrats will flip this seat.”
With the national stakes high and both parties gearing up for an expensive and hard-fought campaign, Maine’s Senate race is poised to become a defining contest in the struggle for control of Congress. As the candidates crisscross the state and the primary battle heats up, Mainers will soon have their say on which vision—and which generation—should represent them in Washington.
