Scoop: Mills "likely" to run for Senate to try to defeat Susan Collins
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Gov. Janet Mills speaks during a press conference in 2023 in Lewiston, Maine. Photo: Scott Eisen/Getty Images
Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) is telling political allies that she is likely to run for the Senate, with some expecting an official announcement in the coming weeks, according to people familiar with the matter.
Why it matters: Party leaders have been pressing the term-limited Mills to challenge Sen. Susan Collins, the only GOP senator representing a state carried by former Vice President Harris in 2024.
- Mills would be the third, and likely final, marquee candidate Democratic leaders have apparently convinced to run for Senate in the critical 2026 midterm election.
- But she would join a crowded Democratic primary, with oyster farmer Graham Platner, Maine Beer Company co-owner Dan Kleban and former Capitol Hill staffer Jordan Wood already in the race.
Driving the news: This month, at an end-of-the-summer "dance party" hosted by Adam Lee, the scion of a storied Maine political family, Mills left little doubt that she is likely to run, according to people familiar with the matter.
- She has been interviewing potential campaign managers but is likely to lean heavily on state Rep. Matt Moonen, who is the majority leader, for strategic advice, as she did in her governor's race.
- She has also increased her tempo of state public events, with three appearances last week, including a ribbon-cutting in Windham for a new child care center.
Zoom out: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has for months pushed Mills, the popular two-term governor, to run for Senate.
- Defeating Collins, who has served five terms in the chamber, has long been a goal of Schumer.
- Collins, 72, outperformed President Trump in 2020 and won her race by nine percentage points.
- In 2022, Mills, 77, won her second governor's race by 13 percentage points.
Zoom in: Mills' entrance into the race would set up a high-profile establishment versus progressive primary showdown.
- While party leaders have nudged Mills toward a run, progressives are lining up behind Platner.
- Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) joined Platner for a rally this month with more than 6,500 people in attendance.
- The other top Senate race recruits by Democratic leaders — North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and former Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown — have largely cleared the primary field in their states.
