Maine Gov. Janet Mills suspends Senate campaign

Maine Gov. Janet Mills announced Thursday that she is suspending her campaign for Senate after trailing military veteran and oyster farmer Graham Platner in the Democratic primary, citing a lack of financial resources.

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“While I have the drive and passion, commitment and experience, and above all else — the fight — to continue on, I very simply do not have the one thing that political campaigns unfortunately require today: the financial resources,” Mills said in a statement.

“That is why today I have made the incredibly difficult decision to suspend my campaign for the United States Senate,” Mills said.

Senate Democrats had touted Mills as a top recruit to take on GOP Sen. Susan Collins, the only Republican senator representing a state that President Donald Trump lost last year. Maine is practically a must-win if Democrats are to net the four seats they need to take control of the chamber in the 2026 midterm election. But Collins has proven a tough opponent in previous elections.

After launching her Senate campaign in October, Mills struggled to gain traction against Platner, who burst onto the scene as a brash political newcomer and quickly built a loyal following. Platner notched endorsements from high-profile progressive leaders including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. Most importantly, he built major support among Maine Democrats, leading by double digits in recent polls of the primary.

Mills, meanwhile, was backed by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who viewed Mills as the party’s best general election candidate.

DSCC chair Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., did not reference Platner in her statement on Mills’ departure from the race.

“Our North Star is winning a Democratic Senate majority, and over the past year, Senate Democrats have carved out multiple paths to do that,” Gillibrand said. “We have recruited strong candidates who have expanded the map, a winning message focused on fighting for hardworking families, and formidable campaigns working every day to hold Republicans accountable. In 2026, Democrats will win a Senate majority.”

Mills, 78, sought to quell concerns about her age by pledging to only serve one term in the Senate. But some Democratic voters were still concerned about her age and viewed Platner as the candidate with the best chance at beating Collins, despite a slew of controversial social media posts from his past that generated headlines in recent months.

Mills had argued those posts would make Platner vulnerable to GOP attacks in November. Platner was a prolific commenter on Reddit, making statements downplaying sexual assualt, criticizing police and rural Americans. An Army and Marine veteran, Platner attributed the posts to his struggles with post-traumatic stress after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.