Maine Gov. Janet Mills declines to endorse party nominee Troy Jackson in Senate race

Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) declined to endorse Troy Jackson, the Democratic nominee for the state’s U.S. Senate seat, in remarks Tuesday to Maine’s Total Coverage, according to The Hill. Mills said she and Jackson have “not spoken” and that her decision not to endorse was based on that lack of direct contact.

In the same interview, Mills said she believes Sen. Susan Collins is vulnerable. “Clearly Susan Collins is vulnerable, and she should be,” Mills said, adding the seat “should be defeated,” as reported by The Hill.

The comments come months ahead of the general election and set up a contrast within Maine’s Democratic leadership over how actively to back the party’s Senate nominee. Mills, the state’s governor, is one of the highest-profile Democrats in Maine and has previously been a key figure in statewide Democratic politics.

Jackson, meanwhile, is seeking to challenge Collins for the Senate seat as the Democratic nominee selected for the general election. The Hill reported that Jackson “earned the party” nomination, framing the race as an open opportunity for Democrats while noting the incumbency and name recognition that come with Collins’s position.

The governor’s decision not to endorse may affect how Democratic allies and outside groups view the urgency of consolidating support behind Jackson at the top of the ticket. In practical terms, an endorsement can be used to unify message discipline, fundraising outreach, and turnout messaging among state party networks, although the interview did not provide additional details on Jackson’s campaign strategy or specific coordination with Mills’s office.

Mills’s remarks also put emphasis on her assessment of Collins’s electoral strength rather than on Jackson’s candidacy personally. Beyond the endorsement question, the interview language suggested Mills’s focus is on the outcome of the race and the likelihood of unseating the incumbent, not on providing active public backing to the nominee.

No further timeline or conditions for an endorsement were described in The Hill report, and the governor did not indicate whether she would revisit the decision later in the election cycle. The next step for the race will be how other Maine Democratic leaders and Jackson’s campaign respond to the lack of a formal endorsement from the governor.