Matt Dunlap wins primary in Maine’s 2nd District as Democrats seek to hang on to Jared Golden’s seat

Matt Dunlap won the Democratic primary in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District after three rounds of ranked-choice voting, the state’s Secretary of State’s office announced Friday. 

Democrats are seeking to hang onto a seat in a district that President Trump won in the last three presidential elections. State Sen. Joe Baldacci led after the first two rounds of ranked–choice voting, but Dunlap overtook him after challengers Paige Loud and Jordan Wood were eliminated. 

Democratic Rep. Jared Golden, a moderate, is retiring after four terms. His decision not to run for reelection was a blow to Democrats’ efforts to retake the House majority. 

In the 2024 election, Golden was one of 13 Democrats to win a House race in a district also won by Mr. Trump. Golden declined to endorse Kamala Harris in the 2024 election and has voted with Republicans on several issues, including measures to avert a shutdown and on reining in Mr. Trump’s war powers authority. 

Dunlap, the state’s auditor, will face Republican Paul LePage in November’s general election. LePage is a former two-term governor who ran unopposed in the GOP primary. As of May 20, LePage had $1.2 million cash on hand while Dunlap had less than $100,000, according to Federal Election Commission data.

Dunlap’s win marks a defeat for House Democrats’ campaign arm. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee endorsed Joe Baldacci, a state senator, saying he “has never lost an election and has consistently overperformed Democrats up and down the ballot, including a 3-point overperformance of the presidential ticket in 2024.” 

Baldacci was the runner–up, the Maine Secretary of State’s office said. The results were announced 10 days after voters went to the polls due to the ranked-choice tabulations.