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Maine gubernatorial election, 2026 (June 9 Republican primary)

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Governor of Maine
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Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: March 16, 2026
Primary: June 9, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voting in Maine

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Likely Democratic
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Lean Democratic
Inside Elections: Likely Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
Federal and state primary competitiveness
State executive elections in 2026
Impact of term limits in 2026
State government trifectas
State government triplexes
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
Maine
executive elections
Governor

A Republican Party primary takes place on June 9, 2026, in Maine to determine which candidate will earn the right to run as the party's nominee in the state's gubernatorial election on November 3, 2026.



This page focuses on Maine's Republican Party gubernatorial primary. For more in-depth information on Maine's Democratic gubernatorial primary and the general election, see the following pages:

Candidates and election results

Republican primary

Republican primary for Governor of Maine

The following candidates are running in the Republican primary for Governor of Maine on June 9, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Jonathan Bush
Jonathan Bush
Image of Bobby Charles
Bobby Charles
Image of David Jones
David Jones
Image of James Libby
James Libby
Image of Garrett Mason
Garrett Mason
Image of Owen McCarthy
Owen McCarthy  Candidate Connection
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Ben Midgley
Image of Robert J. Wessels
Robert J. Wessels  Candidate Connection

There are no incumbents in this race.

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates


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.

Owen McCarthy

Image of Owen McCarthy

WebsiteFacebookXYouTube

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Submitted Biography:  "I’m a proud native of Patten, Maine, a town of fewer than 1,000 people in the shadow of Mount Katahdin. I grew up in a trailer on my grandfather’s land, the son of a third-generation logger and a second-generation school lunch lady. I was the first in my family to attend college, earning an engineering degree from the University of Maine on the Pulp and Paper Scholarship. Drawn to solving real problems, I began my career working directly with Maine’s paper mills, visiting nearly every mill in the state. At my core, I’m an engineer and an entrepreneur. I approach challenges by thinking outside the box, asking hard questions, and focusing on practical solutions. I co-founded MedRhythms, a company that uses neuroscience and technology to help people regain mobility after stroke and Parkinson’s disease. I’m a husband and the father of two young sons, Oliver and Theo. I’m running for governor because I believe Maine’s best days can still be ahead, but only if we are willing to lead differently. I’m not running for the title. I’m running to bring a problem-solver’s mindset to state government, to challenge the status quo, and to build a Maine defined by opportunity for the next generation, affordability for working families, and the discipline to make government work as hard as the people it serves."

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

When I look around Maine today, it has become totally unaffordable for working people like the family I grew up in. After six years of one-party control in Augusta, we have out of control spending, higher taxes, unaffordable housing, failing schools and an addiction crisis. We need to restore hope and opportunity to Maine, and as an engineer, entrepreneur, and political outsider, I’ll bring the fresh-thinking and new perspective we need to change direction and give regular people the fighting chance they deserve.

I’m running for governor because I believe in a Maine that invests in our greatest resource: our people. To move forward, we must harness our competitive strengths, cultivating an economy driven by innovation, talent, and local determination. It’s time to ignite a virtuous cycle of talent and opportunity, ensuring Maine families aren’t left behind in the ongoing technological revolution. We must reimagine our state as more than just a vacationland for the wealthy. Maine should be a place where our people can live, work, and prosper.

As an engineer and entrepreneur, I learned how to build things that matter. I co-founded MedRhythms, a health technology company that used advanced neuroscience and AI to help people walk again after a stroke or Parkinson’s. We raised more than $60 million, earned FDA clearance, completed clinical trials, and created good-paying jobs, not in Silicon Valley, but right here in Maine, because I believed Maine could compete in the industries of the future. I moved the company home to Maine for a reason: I knew what our people were capable of. And as governor, I will help countless others do the same.

Robert J. Wessels

Image of Robert J. Wessels

WebsiteFacebookXYouTube

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Submitted Biography:  "My wife, Christie, and I got married in South Paris in 2001. We have three amazing young adult children. Our two sons have graduated, and our daughter will be graduating from high school in 2027. I am a businessman, having started my retail career stocking shelves during overnight shifts. I have been a store manager for the past 14 years. Although I have earned my MBA, I believe that spending the last 20 years in the school of hard knocks has best prepared me for the job of Governor. I have spent the last 18 years teaching personal finance and budgeting courses in the Oxford Hills community, helping hundreds learn how to navigate through life's difficult financial places. I also spent 4 years as Selectman for the Town of Paris. That is the extent of my political experience. I am not an establishment candidate or part of Maine's political elite."

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

I have spent the last two years traveling across the state of Maine and talking with thousands upon thousands of everyday Mainers. The economy is always the first issue that comes up. Maine has some of the highest energy costs in the nation, we are among the highest-taxed states, and our housing prices are skyrocketing. My grown children are worried about being able to afford an apartment. We must shrink the size of our government to lower costs and reduce taxes. We need a new perspective and approach to energy in the state, as demand will only continue to increase in the coming years. We must also remove unnecessary regulations to attract more businesses (and jobs) and to lower the costs of building and housing in Maine.

We need to take back our government. Maine's government is running amok and doing whatever it wants — this is not how our system was designed to operate. Bureaucracies are often running the show, and our legislators and governor are acting without accountability. Maine needs a dedicated group to do a deep dive into how our government is operating and what we are spending our money on. We must root out all corruption and hold the corrupt accountable. We need to identify all instances of mismanagement — whether intentional or unintentional — and put an end to it. We must leverage technology to create efficiencies and make each department more effective, using fewer resources. All of these savings must be turned into LOWER TAXES!

The only way to be successful long-term as a state is to have successful schools — and right now, we don’t. In the 1990s, Maine was among the top in the nation, but we have fallen near the bottom (or to the bottom, depending on the report). This is unacceptable — our children are our future. Our public schools are currently being micromanaged from Augusta. We need to shift decision-making authority back to the districts. We also need to create a competitive environment by allowing school choice and ensuring easy access to non-public school options. Competition is a key driver of success in the business world, and with competition among our schools, parents and students will be the winners. Maine will WIN!

Voting information

See also: Voting in Maine

Election information in Maine: June 9, 2026, election.

What is the voter registration deadline?

  • In-person: June 9, 2026
  • By mail: Received by May 19, 2026
  • Online: May 19, 2026

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

N/A

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

  • In-person: June 4, 2026
  • By mail: Received by June 4, 2026
  • Online: June 4, 2026

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

  • In-person: June 9, 2026
  • By mail: Received by June 9, 2026

Is early voting available to all voters?

Yes

What are the early voting start and end dates?

May 10, 2026 to June 4, 2026

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

N/A

When are polls open on Election Day?

Varies - 8:00 p.m. (ET)

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.[1] 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."[2] For tips on reading polls from FiveThirtyEight, click here. For tips from Pew, click here.

Below we provide results for polls from a wide variety of sources, including media outlets, social media, campaigns, and aggregation websites, when available. We only report polls for which we can find a margin of error or credibility interval. Know of something we're missing? Click here to let us know.


Maine gubernatorial Republican primary, 2026 polls
PollDatesBushCharlesJonesLibbyMasonMcCarthyMidgleyWesselsOtherUndecidedSample sizeMargin of error
University of New Hampshire
–
5287212164331
404 LV
± 4.9%
Note: LV is likely voters, RV is registered voters, and EV is eligible voters.

Election analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about demographics, past elections, and partisan control of the state.

  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the state.
  • Statewide elections - Information about recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections in the state.
  • State partisanship - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
  • Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.


See also: Presidential voting trends in Maine and The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Cook PVI by congressional district

Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index for Maine, 2026
DistrictIncumbentPVI
Maine's 1stChellie PingreeD+11
Maine's 2ndJared GoldenR+4

2024 presidential results by 2026 congressional district lines

2024 presidential results in congressional districts, Maine
DistrictKamala Harris Democratic PartyDonald Trump Republican Party
Maine's 1st60.0%38.0%
Maine's 2nd44.0%54.0%
Source: The Downballot

2016-2024

How a state's counties vote in a presidential election and the size of those counties can provide additional insights into election outcomes at other levels of government including statewide and congressional races. Below, four categories are used to describe each county's voting pattern over the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections: Solid, Trending, Battleground, and New. Click [show] on the table below for examples:


Following the 2024 presidential election, 53.1% of Mainers lived in one of the state's 7 Solid Democratic counties, which voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in every election from 2016 to 2024, and 37.8% lived in one of 8 Solid Republican counties. Overall, Maine was Solid Democratic, having voted for Hillary Clinton (D) in 2016, Joe Biden (D) in 2020, and Kamala Harris (D) in 2024. Use the table below to view the total number of each type of county in Maine following the 2024 election as well as the overall percentage of the state population located in each county type.

Historical voting trends

Maine presidential election results (1900-2024)

  • 12 Democratic wins
  • 20 Republican wins
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Winning Party R R R D R R R R R R R R R R R R D D R R R R R D D D D D D D D D

This section details the results of the five most recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections held in the state.

U.S. Senate elections

See also: List of United States Senators from Maine

The table below details the vote in the five most recent U.S. Senate races in Maine.

U.S. Senate election results in Maine
RaceWinnerRunner up
202451.7%Grey.png (Independent)34.4%Republican Party
202051.0%Republican Party42.4%Democratic Party
201854.3%Grey.png (Independent)35.2%Republican Party
201468.5%Republican Party31.5%Democratic Party
201252.9%Grey.png (Independent)30.7%Republican Party
Average55.735.7

Gubernatorial elections

See also: Governor of Maine

The table below details the vote in the five most recent gubernatorial elections in Maine.

Gubernatorial election results in Maine
RaceWinnerRunner up
202255.7%Democratic Party42.4%Republican Party
201850.9%Democratic Party43.2%Republican Party
201448.2%Republican Party43.4%Democratic Party
201037.6%Republican Party35.9%Grey.png (Independent)
200638.1%Republican Party30.2%Democratic Party
Average46.139.0
See also: Party control of Maine state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of Maine's congressional delegation as of October 2025.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Maine
Party U.S. Senate U.S. House Total
Democratic 0 2 2
Republican 1 0 1
Independent 1 0 1
Vacancies 0 0 0
Total 2 2 4

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in Maine's top three state executive offices as of October 2025.

State executive officials in Maine, October 2025
OfficeOfficeholder
GovernorDemocratic Party Janet T. Mills
Secretary of StateDemocratic Party Shenna Bellows
Attorney GeneralDemocratic Party Aaron Frey

State legislature

Maine State Senate

Party As of January 2026
     Democratic Party 20
     Republican Party 14
     Other 1
     Vacancies 0
Total 35

Maine House of Representatives

Party As of January 2026
     Democratic Party 74
     Republican Party 72
     Independent 3
     Unenrolled 0
     Vacancies 2
Total 151[3]

Trifecta control

Maine Party Control: 1992-2025
Fifteen years of Democratic trifectas  •  Two years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor R R R I I I I I I I I D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D
Senate D D D R R D D D D S S D D D D D D D D R R D D R R R R D D D D D D D
House D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R D D D D D D D D D D D D D

The table below details demographic data in Maine and compares it to the broader United States as of 2023.

Demographic Data for Maine
Maine United States
Population 1,362,359 331,449,281
Land area (sq mi) 30,844 3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White 91.3% 63.4%
Black/African American 1.7% 12.4%
Asian 1.1% 5.8%
Native American 0.5% 0.9%
Pacific Islander 0.1% 0.4%
Other (single race) 0.7% 6.6%
Multiple 4.7% 10.7%
Hispanic/Latino 2.1% 19%
Education
High school graduation rate 94.5% 89.4%
College graduation rate 35.3% 35%
Income
Median household income $71,773 $78,538
Persons below poverty level 10.8% 12.4%
Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2018-2023).
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

State profile

Demographic data for Maine
 MaineU.S.
Total population:1,329,453316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):30,8433,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:95%73.6%
Black/African American:1.1%12.6%
Asian:1.1%5.1%
Native American:0.6%0.8%
Pacific Islander:0%0.2%
Two or more:2%3%
Hispanic/Latino:1.5%17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:91.6%86.7%
College graduation rate:29%29.8%
Income
Median household income:$49,331$53,889
Persons below poverty level:16.6%11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Maine.
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Maine

Maine voted for the Democratic candidate in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, eight are located in Maine, accounting for 3.88 percent of the total pivot counties.[4]

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Maine had seven Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, accounting for 4.42 and 4.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.

More Maine coverage on Ballotpedia

See also

Maine State Executive Elections News and Analysis
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Maine State Executive Offices
Maine State Legislature
Maine Courts
2026 • 2025 • 2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016
Maine elections: 2026 • 2025 • 2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016
Party control of state government
State government trifectas
State of the state addresses
Partisan composition of governors

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ For more information on the difference between margins of error and credibility intervals, see explanations from the American Association for Public Opinion Research and Ipsos.
  2. ↑ Pew Research Center, "5 key things to know about the margin of error in election polls," September 8, 2016
  3. ↑ Excludes three nonvoting members representing the Penobscot Nation, the Passamaquoddy Tribe and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians.
  4. ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.


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