Incumbent Rep. Jared Golden (D) defeated former Rep. Bruce Poliquin (R) and Tiffany Bond (I) in Maine's 2nd Congressional District on November 8, 2022.

Golden defeated Poliquin, then the incumbent, along with Bond and Will Hoar (I) in 2018. That was the first congressional race ever decided by ranked-choice voting. Golden defeated Poliquin 50.6% to 49.4% after ranked-choice tabulations. Before Poliquin, no incumbent had lost the district since 1916, Roll Call reported.^[1]

To learn more about ranked-choice voting, which was also used in the 2022 election, see below.

Golden served in the Marines and the Maine House of Representatives before his election to the U.S. House. Golden said his record, which included being the only House Democrat to vote against the Build Back Better Act in 2021, showed he was a "fierce, independent voice" for the district.^[2] Golden also highlighted his support for the 2021 infrastructure bill and increasing oil and gas production, federal funds he helped secure for loggers and the lobster industry, and his endorsement from the state Fraternal Order of Police.^[3]^[4]^[5]

Before serving in the House, Poliquin was an investment manager and served as state treasurer after the Maine Legislature selected him on the recommendation of former Gov. Paul LePage (R).^[6] Poliquin emphasized his business background and criticized Democrats for inflation, high gas prices, and what he called an open border.^[7] Poliquin said he would work to control spending, reopen oil and natural gas supplies, and "secure our border to make sure we take care of America first."^[2]

Bond is a family law attorney who said she "isn’t distracted by the constant fundraising and partisan noise." Bond said she agreed with Republicans on issues such as financial responsibility and smaller government and with Democrats on issues such as privacy and healthcare accessibility. Bond asked supporters to donate to causes or spend at local businesses while leaving a note about her campaign instead of donating to her campaign.^[8]^[9]^[10]

The Associated Press' Patrick Whittle said that Poliquin's focus on issues like immigration and gun rights in 2022 marked "a shift from his earlier campaigns, which focused more closely on controlling taxes and protecting rural jobs." Whittle said Golden "has long positioned himself as a moderate who supports the 2nd Amendment and works to safeguard industries such as commercial fishing and papermaking" and was taking a similar approach in 2022.^[11]

The 2nd District was one of 13 U.S. House districts Democrats were defending that Donald Trump (R) won in the 2020 presidential election. According to Daily Kos data, Trump would have defeated Joe Biden (D) in the 2nd District as it was redrawn after the 2020 census 51.6%-45.5%.^[12]

The outcome of this race affected the partisan balance of the U.S. House of Representatives in the 118th Congress. All 435 House districts were up for election.

For more information about the primaries in this election, click on the links below:

Candidates and election results

General election

General election for U.S. House Maine District 2

Select round:

The ranked-choice voting election was won by Jared Golden in round 2 . The results of Round are displayed below. To see the results of other rounds, use the dropdown menu above to select a round and the table will update.

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 316,382
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Democratic primary election

Democratic Primary for U.S. House Maine District 2

The following candidates advanced in the ranked-choice voting election: Jared Golden in round 1 .

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 25,684
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Michael Sutton (D)

Republican primary election

Republican Primary for U.S. House Maine District 2

The following candidates advanced in the ranked-choice voting election: Bruce Poliquin in round 1 .

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 36,848
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Voting information

See also: Voting in Maine

Election information in Maine: Nov. 8, 2022, election.

What was the voter registration deadline?

In-person: Nov. 8, 2022
By mail: Received by Oct. 18, 2022
Online: N/A

Was absentee/mail-in voting available to all voters?

N/A

What was the absentee/mail-in ballot request deadline?

In-person: Nov. 3, 2022
By mail: Received by Nov. 3, 2022
Online: Nov. 3, 2022

What was the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadline?

In-person: Nov. 8, 2022
By mail: Received by Nov. 8, 2022

Was early voting available to all voters?

Yes

What were the early voting start and end dates?

Oct. 9, 2022 to Nov. 3, 2022

Were all voters required to present ID at the polls? If so, was a photo or non-photo ID required?

N/A

When were polls open on Election Day?

N/A

Candidate comparison

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.

Jared Golden

Party: Democratic Party

Incumbent: Yes

Political Office:

U.S. House of Representatives, ME-02 (Assumed office: 2019)
Maine House of Representatives, District 60 (2014-2018)

Biography: Golden served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan as a Marine. He graduated from Bates College. Golden worked as a staffer for Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

Key Messages

The following key messages were curated by Ballotpedia staff. For more on how we identify key messages, click here.

Golden noted that he was the only House Democrat to vote against the Build Back Better Act. He said, "I have voted against the Biden administration more than any other Democrat in Congress. I voted against my own party more than any other Democrat in Congress."

Golden said he'd worked to pass the 2021 infrastructure bill, lower prescription drug prices for seniors, prevent healthcare cost spikes, and increase oil and gas production.

Golden said he opposed defunding the police and highlighted his endorsement from the Maine Fraternal Order of Police.

Show sources

Sources: News Center Maine, "Maine's CD2 candidates face off in NEWS CENTER Maine debate," September 27, 2022; Jared Golden's 2022 campaign website, "Important," accessed September 30, 2022; YouTube, "Independent | Jared Golden for Congress (ME-02)," August 9, 2022; YouTube, "Table | Jared Golden for Congress (ME-02)," August 26, 2022; YouTube, "Friend | Jared Golden for Congress (ME-02)," September 23, 2022; Congressman Jared Golden, "Congressman Jared Golden: 'Let’s Get to Work,'" accessed September 29, 2022

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Maine District 2 in 2022.

Bruce Poliquin

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office:

U.S. House of Representatives, ME-02 (2015-2019)
Maine Treasurer (2010-2012)

Biography: Poliquin received a bachelor's degree from Harvard University. He owned several businesses and managed pension funds. Gov. Paul LePage (R) recommended Poliquin as state treasurer, and the legislature selected him for the position.

Key Messages

The following key messages were curated by Ballotpedia staff. For more on how we identify key messages, click here.

Poliquin said, "If you want to make a change, I represent that difference. We will stop this out-of-control spending to drive down inflation, we will reopen the supplies of oil and natural gas ... and we will secure our border to make sure we take care of America first."

Poliquin said, "Biden and all Democrats created this mess" of inflation and that "Maine needs a congressman who will stand up to Biden and help Maine families."

Poliquin emphasized his business background, saying he created jobs and helped manage pensions.

Show sources

Sources: News Center Maine, "Maine's CD2 candidates face off in NEWS CENTER Maine debate," September 27, 2022; YouTube, "Bruce Poliquin Fighting Inflation and Working for Maine," September 28, 2022; Bruce Poliquin's 2022 campaign website, "Home," accessed September 30, 2022; Bruce Poliquin's 2022 campaign website, "Meet Bruce," accessed September 29, 2022; The Main Wire, "On the Record: Republican candidate for Congress Bruce Poliquin," October 7, 2013

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Maine District 2 in 2022.

Tiffany Bond

Party: Independent

Incumbent: No

Biography: Bond received an associate degree from Cascadia Community College, a bachelor's from the University of Washington, an M.B.A. from the Drexel University College of Business and Administration, and a J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law. Bond was president of FairTrade Vacations from 2005 to 2016. She was a family law attorney as of the 2022 election.

Key Messages

The following key messages were curated by Ballotpedia staff. For more on how we identify key messages, click here.

Bond criticized political bickering and campaign ads. She asked supporters to invest in the community while mentioning her campaign instead of donating to her campaign.

Bond said she would enjoy reading proposed legislation for a living: "Hire me to devote my work week to turn nonsense into common sense."

Bond said climate change and healthcare were among her priorities. On the latter, she said, "Let’s update and improve the ACA [Affordable Care Act] while we thoughtfully consider and CBO [Congressional Budget Office] score a few models – there may be elements of single-payer, universal, market features, and/or things we haven’t come up with yet."

Show sources

Sources: News Center Maine, "Maine's CD2 candidates face off in NEWS CENTER Maine debate," September 27, 2022; Tiffany Bond's 2022 campaign website, "About Me," accessed September 30, 2022; Associated Press, "Maine rematch could be a bellwether for control of Congress," September 18, 2022; Tiffany Bond's 2022 campaign website, "Issues," accessed September 30, 2022; LinkedIn, "Tiffany Bond," accessed September 29, 2022; Vote Smart, "Tiffany Bond's Biography," accessed September 29, 2022

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Maine District 2 in 2022.

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

No candidate in this race completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign advertisements

Jared Golden

September 23, 2022

August 26, 2022

August 9, 2022

View more ads here:

Bruce Poliquin

October 17, 2022

September 28, 2022

September 28, 2022

View more ads here:

Tiffany Bond

Ballotpedia did not come across any campaign ads for Tiffany Bond while conducting research on this election. If you are aware of any ads that should be included, please email us.

View campaign videos here:

YouTube

Ranked-choice voting

Ranked-choice voting in Maine

Maine uses ranked-choice voting for all federal and state-level (e.g., governor, state senator, and state representative) primary elections. Ranked-choice voting is used in general elections for federal offices only (i.e., U.S. Congress and the presidency).^[13]

Click here for information on the history of ranked-choice voting in Maine.

How ranked-choice voting works

Broadly speaking, the ranked-choice voting process unfolds as follows for single-winner elections:

Voters rank the candidates for a given office by preference on their ballots.
If a candidate wins an outright majority of first-preference votes (i.e., 50 percent plus one), he or she will be declared the winner.
If, on the other hand, no candidates win an outright majority of first-preference votes, the candidate with the fewest first-preference votes is eliminated.
All first-preference votes for the failed candidate are eliminated, lifting the second-preference choices indicated on those ballots.
A new tally is conducted to determine whether any candidate has won an outright majority of the adjusted voters.
The process is repeated until a candidate wins a majority of votes cast.

Example

Assume that there are four candidates for mayor in a hypothetical city. The table below presents the raw first-preference vote totals for each candidate.

Raw first-preference vote tallies in a hypothetical mayoral race
Candidate	First-preference votes	Percentage
Candidate A	475	46.34%
Candidate B	300	29.27%
Candidate C	175	17.07%
Candidate D	75	7.32%

In the above scenario, no candidate won an outright majority of first-preference votes. As a result, the candidate (Candidate D) with the smallest number of first-preference votes is eliminated. The ballots that listed candidate D as the first preference are adjusted, raising their second-preference candidates. Assume that, of the 75 first-preference votes for Candidate D, 50 listed Candidate A as their second preference and 25 listed Candidate B. The adjusted vote totals would be as follows:

Adjusted vote tallies in a hypothetical mayoral race
Candidate	Adjusted first-preference votes	Percentage
Candidate A	525	51.22%
Candidate B	325	31.71%
Candidate C	175	17.07%

On the second tally, Candidate A secured 51.22 percent of the vote, thereby winning the election.

Note: The above is a simplified example used for illustrative purposes. Specific procedures vary by jurisdiction and according to the nature of the election (i.e., whether it is a single-winner or multi-winner contest).

Endorsements

See also: Ballotpedia: Our approach to covering endorsements

Click the links below to see official endorsement lists published on candidate campaign websites for any candidates that make that information available. If you are aware of a website that should be included, please email us.

Tiffany Bond

Campaign spending

Campaign finance

This section contains campaign finance figures from the Federal Election Commission covering all candidate fundraising and spending in this election.^[14] It does not include information on fundraising before the current campaign cycle or on spending by satellite groups. The numbers in this section are updated as candidates file new campaign finance reports. Candidates for Congress are required to file financial reports on a quarterly basis, as well as two weeks before any primary, runoff, or general election in which they will be on the ballot and upon the termination of any campaign committees.^[15] Click here to view the reporting schedule for candidates for U.S. Congress in 2022.

U.S. Congress campaign reporting schedule, 2022
Report	Close of books	Filing deadline
Year-end 2021	12/31/2021	1/31/2022
April quarterly	3/31/2022	4/15/2022
July quarterly	6/30/2022	7/15/2022
October quarterly	9/30/2022	10/15/2022
Pre-general	10/19/2022	10/27/2022
Post-general	11/28/2022	12/08/2022
Year-end 2022	12/31/2022	1/31/2023

Name	Party	Receipts*	Disbursements**	Cash on hand	Date
Jared Golden	Democratic Party	$6,068,685	$6,164,856	$34,690	As of December 31, 2022
Elizabeth Caruso	Republican Party	$46,070	$46,070	$0	As of June 30, 2022
Bruce Poliquin	Republican Party	$3,671,940	$3,566,163	$105,777	As of December 31, 2022
Tiffany Bond	Independent	$0	$0	$0	Data not available***
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2022. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC). * According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election. * Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

Satellite spending

See also: Satellite spending

Satellite spending describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.^[16]^[17]

If available, satellite spending reports by the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and OpenSecrets.org are linked below. FEC links include totals from monthly, quarterly, and semi-annual reports. OpenSecrets.org compiles data from those reports as well as 24- and 48-hour reports from the FEC.^[18]

Details about satellite spending of significant amounts and/or reported by media are included below those links. The amounts listed may not represent the total satellite spending in the election. To notify us of additional satellite spending, email us.

By candidate	By election
FEC - Jared Golden FEC - Bruce Poliquin	Open Secrets - Maine's 2nd Congressional District FEC - Maine's 2nd Congressional District

Election competitiveness

Polls

See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls

Polls are conducted with a variety of methodologies and have margins of error or credibility intervals.^[19] The Pew Research Center wrote, "A margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points at the 95% confidence level means that if we fielded the same survey 100 times, we would expect the result to be within 3 percentage points of the true population value 95 of those times."^[20] For tips on reading polls from FiveThirtyEight, click here. For tips from Pew, click here.

The links below show polls for this race aggregated by FiveThirtyEight and RealClearPolitics, where available. Click here to read about FiveThirtyEight's criteria for including polls in its aggregation.

Race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.^[21]
Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.^[22]^[23]^[24]

Race ratings: Maine's 2nd Congressional District election, 2022
Race tracker	Race ratings
	November 8, 2022	November 1, 2022	October 25, 2022	October 18, 2022
The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter	Toss-up	Toss-up	Toss-up	Toss-up
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales	Tilt Democratic	Tilt Democratic	Tilt Democratic	Toss-up
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball	Lean Democratic	Toss-up	Toss-up	Toss-up
Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week.

Election context

Ballot access requirements

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Maine in the 2022 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Maine, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2022
State	Office	Party	Signatures required	Filing fee	Filing deadline	Source
Maine	U.S. House	Ballot-qualified party	1,000	N/A	3/15/2022	Source
Maine	U.S. House	Unaffiliated	2,000	N/A	6/1/2022	Source