Maine's Joe Baldacci is latest Democrat to join race for Golden's seat

Mary Ellen McIntire, CQ-Roll Call on Jan 12, 2026

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WASHINGTON — Maine state Sen. Joe Baldacci, the brother of former Rep. and Gov. John Baldacci, is running to succeed retiring fellow Democrat Jared Golden in a battleground district that’s voted for Donald Trump three times.

Golden announced last year that he would not seek a fifth term representing the rural 2nd District, leaving Democrats to defend a seat that Trump carried by 9 points in 2024 as they seek to win control of the House this fall.

“I’m running for Congress because Maine needs a fighter in Washington D.C. — someone who understands what it means when groceries, health care, and housing become unaffordable, and who will actually do something about it,” Baldacci said in a statement Monday announcing his campaign.

Baldacci joins a primary that already includes state Auditor Matt Dunlap, former congressional aide Jordan Wood, who was previously running for Senate, and social worker Paige Loud. Republicans, meanwhile, have largely coalesced around former Gov. Paul LePage.

An attorney, Baldacci has served in the state Senate since 2020. He briefly ran for the 2nd District in 2016, but ended his campaign before the primary. His brother, John Baldacci, was first elected to the House in 1994 and served for four terms in the House before winning his first of two terms as governor in 2002.

The race for the vast 2nd District, which covers much of Maine outside the Portland and Augusta areas, is likely to be one of the most competitive House seats in the midterm elections. Since Golden announced his retirement in November, Democrats have been searching for a strong candidate who could hold the seat. Internal polling obtained by CQ Roll Call showed the state senator as the front-runner in the primary and running close with LePage in the general election.

Baldacci is the latest political scion to seek elected office in Maine this year.

Former state House Speaker Hannah Pingree is running for governor, while her mother, Democratic Rep. Chellie Pingree, is seeking a 10th term in Congress. Also seeking the Democratic nomination for governor is businessman Angus King III, the son of Sen. Angus King, an independent who caucuses with Democrats. And the crowded Republican gubernatorial primary includes businessman Jonathan Bush, the nephew of former President George H.W. Bush.