Maine voters elect Hannah Pingree as governor, oust Susan Collins in Senate

Maine voters elect Hannah Pingree as governor, oust Susan Collins in Senate

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Maine Voters Oust Susan Collins, Elect Hannah Pingree Governor in Democratic Sweep

On November 3, 2026, Maine voters delivered a decisive victory to Democrats across the ballot, ousting incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins after 30 years in the U.S. Senate and electing Democrat Hannah Pingree as governor, The Maine Monitor reported. The state results formed part of a national wave that saw Democrats win control of both the U.S. House and Senate, while one Maine congressional race remained too close to call as of Wednesday morning.

The outcome reshapes Maine’s political landscape at a moment when affordability and national politics dominated voter concerns. With Democrats retaining the governor’s office for the first time since the 1950s without an incumbent on the ballot, and poised to maintain control of both chambers of the state Legislature, the party now holds a governing trifecta in Augusta. Yet the 2nd Congressional District contest between Democratic State Auditor Matt Dunlap and former Republican Governor Paul LePage remained unresolved, with Dunlap holding a lead of fewer than 300 votes and an estimated 13 percent of ballots still uncounted.

Collins Falls After Three Decades

Senator Susan Collins lost her bid for a sixth term to Democrat Troy Jackson, a former Maine Senate president, by 7.4 points with 87 percent of votes counted Wednesday morning. The result ended Collins’ three-decade Senate career and marked a dramatic reversal from expectations; voters had told pollsters they still expected Collins to win, given that she outperformed her polling average by 14 points in 2020. After a chaotic primary in which he finished third in the Democratic gubernatorial contest and Senate candidate Graham Platner withdrew from the race amid growing scandals, delegates overwhelmingly chose Jackson to replace Platner in July.

Voters across the state cited a desire for change at the federal level. “I’m ready for different leadership and guidance,” said Leah Trommer, 46, of Belfast. “I want to put our money to support Americans and the state of Maine, as opposed to funding billionaires.” Others pointed directly to national politics. Bonnie O’Reilly, 80, an independent from Casco, said Collins needed to leave office, echoing widespread voter views that framed the election as a judgment on Trump administration decisions ranging from immigration enforcement to the war in Iran, with many wanting to remove Collins over her backing of the president.

Governor-elect Hannah Pingree thanks Maine voters, outlines vision

Pingree Wins Governor’s Race

Hannah Pingree decisively defeated Republican Bobby Charles and independent Rick Bennett to become Maine’s next governor, marking the first time since the 1950s that the state’s governorship remained in the same party’s hands without an incumbent running. Bennett, a former Republican, drew 8 percent of the vote. Supporters highlighted Pingree’s career in politics and hoped she would support health care access, particularly reproductive health care. “She has the experience to run the state,” said Pete Didisheim, 67, of Brunswick.

Charles nonetheless motivated some voters to participate. Marie Thibeault, 59, a Turner resident who came to the U.S. from Canada as a child, cast her first ballot in an American election, voting exclusively for Charles. She felt he would heed voters’ concerns and concurred with his position on transgender students, stating she believes there are “only two genders.”

Maine election results in 10 charts
Photo: newsbreak.com

Congressional Districts Split

The 2nd Congressional District, however, remained undecided. As of noon Wednesday, Dunlap led LePage by less than 300 votes with 13 percent of the vote outstanding. Bloomberg reported that Maine utilizes ranked-choice voting in some elections, with voters ranking candidates and having second choices reallocated if no one wins a majority, meaning outcomes in the Senate and 2nd Congressional District races could be decided by that process. If LePage ultimately wins, it would be a rare Republican pickup as Democrats shape up to win the national House vote by 13 percentage points. Voters expressed divided opinions: Read McAllian, 33, of Bucksport, backed Dunlap because he did not feel LePage did a good job as governor, while Bonnie-Jean Brooks, 84, of Stockton Springs, called Dunlap “tremendously honest” and straightforward. Conversely, Shawn Bailey, 63, a Republican from Belfast, described LePage as “bailing out Maine during his term as governor” and said he hoped he could “do it again” in Congress.

A Smooth Election Day Amid High Turnout

Despite heated rhetoric in the lead-up to the election, Election Day was busy but smooth in communities across the state. With over 250 volunteers acting as nonpartisan election monitors, the League of Women Voters of Maine described the election as “securely and professionally run” with “no major signs of voter intimidation or interference,” while Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows told The Maine Monitor that “people turned out to vote and, for the most part, had a positive voting experience,” and predicted turnout would surpass the previous midterm record from 2022.

Mainers told reporters that affordability was top of mind as they cast ballots, from groceries to the cost of heating oil. While Democrats appear set to keep control of both the Maine House and Senate—preserving their governing trifecta—the Associated Press had not yet called more than 50 state House races and 10 state Senate districts as of noon Wednesday.

The 2nd Congressional District race remains the final open question of Maine’s election: with ranked-choice voting potentially in play and hundreds of ballots still outstanding, neither Dunlap nor LePage has claimed victory, leaving the district’s representation in Congress undecided.

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