Maine Democratic Gov. Janet Mills announces Senate campaign launch, then quickly deletes post
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Maine Democratic Gov. Janet Mills appeared to announce the launch of her campaign for the Senate on Friday, but then quickly deleted the post.
In a later-deleted announcement video, the 77-year-old Maine governor asked: “Folks, do you want the Democrats to take back the Senate? I’m Governor Janet Mills, and I’m running to flip the Maine Senate seat blue.”
In the video, Mills took aim at incumbent Sen. Susan Collins, a moderate Republican, saying she “sold out Maine and bowed to special interests and Donald Trump, but that’s over.”
The video directed supporters to donate to the ActBlue page, which has since been deleted.
On the donation page, Mills praised his good will, saying: “I’ve spent my career standing up for families in Maine as DA, Attorney General, and Governor. I took on Big Pharma, expanded access to health care, and took Donald Trump to court and won.”
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Democratic Governor Janet Mills will deliver her State of the State address at the State Capitol in Augusta, Maine, on Tuesday, January 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
After the posts were deleted, reactions began to pour in on the internet.
“In a since-deleted tweet at 4:30pm on the Friday before the holiday weekend, Janet Mills confirmed that she was, in fact, running for Senate… A poor digital employee is about to be fired!” He enlisted National Republican Senatorial Committee staffer Joanna Rodriguez.
A progressive political commentator named Jack Cocchiarella commented: “If you think Democratic politics is lacking in charismatic older candidates, wait until 77-year-old Janet Mills meets Chuck Schumer’s pick for the Senate. She posted this launch video today and deleted it two hours later.”
Mills’ statement was long awaited. He is seen as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s favorite candidate.
The top Democrat in the Senate has urged Mills to run, viewing her as the best candidate to beat Collins, the only Republican senator up for re-election next year in a state that Democrats have claimed in the presidential primary. Collins’ defeat is essential for Democrats to have a chance at regaining the Senate majority.
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Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, has pushed back against Majority Forward, a Democratic PAC aligned with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (DY), over ads suggesting he spent his career trading stocks to enrich himself in Washington. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
But before reaching the general election, Mills would be challenged primarily by a much younger and longtime progressive champion on the left, Sen. of Vermont. He faces a potentially competitive and divisive primary among a crowded field of candidates, including a rising star backed by Bernie Sanders.
Mills, a former elected district attorney and former state lawmaker, made history as Maine’s first female attorney general.
She then won election in 2018 as Maine’s first female governor and was re-elected in 2022, comfortably defeating former Republican Gov. Paul LePage by double digits.
Although he would be considered a frontrunner for the Democratic Senate nomination, thanks in part to his wide name recognition in blue-leaning Maine, he may face a serious challenge from Graham Platner, a 41-year-old U.S. Marine and Army veteran and oyster farmer who launched his campaign in August.
Platner, who raised more than $3 million in the first six weeks after announcing his candidacy, is backed by Sanders, a two-time runner-up for the Democratic presidential nomination who recently stopped in Maine to headline a campaign rally.
Sanders issued a warning to Mills last week, saying on social media: “Graham Platner is a great working class candidate who will beat Susan Collins for the Senate in Maine.”
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Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., has thrown his support behind Graham Platner, a U.S. Marine and Army veteran and oyster farmer who is running for the Democratic Party for Senate in August. (Joe Maher)
“It’s disappointing that some Democratic leaders are calling on Governor Mills to run. We should focus on winning that seat and not spend millions on an unnecessary and divisive primary,” Sanders added.
Other candidates vying for the Democratic Senate nomination include Maine Beer Co. co-founder Dan Kleban and former congressional staffer Jordan Wood, who raised nearly $3 million in his third quarter of fundraising from July to September.
Phil Rench, a former senior engineer at Elon Musk’s SpaceX, is running as an independent candidate.
Collins first won election to the Senate in 1996 and won re-election by comfortable double digits in 2002, 2008 and 2014.
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President Donald Trump and Maine Gov. Janet Mills clashed at the White House earlier this year over compliance with the executive order. (Repository via AP; credit McNamee/Getty Images)
He currently chairs the influential Senate Appropriations Committee.
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In her 2020 reelection, Collins faced Democratic State House Speaker Sara Gideon in a hotly contested race that became the most expensive race in Maine history. Although polls showed Collins trailing her Democratic opponent, she won the election by more than eight points.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
