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State Rep. Jared Golden (D) defeated Rep. Bruce Poliquin (R), Tiffany Bond (I) and Will Hoar (I) in the November 6, 2018, general election to represent Maine's 2nd Congressional District.
This election was decided by ranked-choice voting. Read more below.
This was the first general election in Maine for which ranked-choice voting was law, and this race was the first in U.S. history where the process was used to decide a congressional election.
All 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives were up for election in 2018. The Democratic Party gained a net total of 40 seats, winning control of the chamber. This race was identified as a 2018 battleground that might have affected partisan control of the U.S. House in the 116th Congress. Heading into the election, the Republican Party was in the majority holding 235 seats to Democrats' 193 seats, with seven vacant seats. Democrats needed to win 23 GOP-held seats in 2018 to win control of the House. From 1918 to 2016, the president’s party lost an average of 29 seats in midterm elections.
Prior to Poliquin's defeat, no incumbent had lost an election for Maine's 2nd District seat since 1916. Before Poliquin won the seat in 2014, Democrats held it for 20 years. Barack Obama (D) won the district in the 2012 presidential election by 9 percentage points. Donald Trump (R) won the district in 2016 by 10 percentage points.
Maine's 2nd Congressional District election, 2018
| Poll | Bruce Poliquin | Jared Golden | Undecided | Margin of Error | Sample Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emerson College October 27-29, 2018 | 46% | 47% | 4% | +/-4.9 | 441 |
| NYT Upshot/Siena College October 15-18, 2018 | 41% | 41% | 15% | +/-4.8 | 501 |
| NYT Upshot/Siena College September 12-14, 2018 | 47% | 42% | 11% | +/-4.8 | 506 |
The chart below contains data from financial reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jared Golden | Democratic Party | $5,776,195 | $5,683,486 | $92,709 | As of December 31, 2018 |
| Bruce Poliquin | Republican Party | $4,233,235 | $4,253,973 | $3,593 | As of December 31, 2018 |
|
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2018.
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
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This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Maine from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Maine Secretary of State and the Federal Election Commission.
This chart shows the results of the presidential election in Maine every year from 2000 to 2016.
Election results (President of the United States), Maine 2000-2016
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 |  Hillary Clinton |
47.8% |  Donald Trump |
44.9% | 2.9% |
| 2012 | Barack Obama |
56.3% | Mitt Romney |
41.0% | 15.3% |
| 2008 | Barack Obama |
57.7% | John McCain |
40.4% | 17.3% |
| 2004 | John Kerry |
53.6% | George W. Bush |
44.6% | 9.0% |
| 2000 | Al Gore |
49.1% | George W. Bush |
44.0% | 5.1% |
This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Maine from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.
Election results (U.S. Senator), Maine 2000-2016
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Susan Collins |
67.0% | Shenna Bellows |
30.8% | 36.2% |
| 2012 |  Angus King |
51.1% | Charles Summers |
29.7% | 21.4% |
| 2008 | Susan Collins |
61.3% | Thomas H. Allen |
38.6% | 22.7% |
| 2006 | Olympia Snowe |
74.0% | Jean Hay Bright |
20.6% | 53.4% |
| 2002 | Susan Collins |
58.4% | Chellie Pingree |
41.6% | 16.8% |
| 2000 | Olympia Snowe |
68.9% | Mark Lawrence |
31.1% | 37.8% |
This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Maine.
Election results (Governor), Maine 2000-2016
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Paul LePage |
48.2% | Mike Michaud |
43.4% | 4.8% |
| 2010 | Paul LePage |
37.6% | Eliot Cutler |
35.9% | 1.7% |
| 2006 | John E. Baldacci |
38.1% | Chandler E. Woodcock |
30.2% | 7.9% |
| 2002 | John E. Baldacci |
47.1% | Peter E. Cianchette |
41.5% | 5.6% |
This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Maine in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.
Congressional delegation, Maine 2000-2016
| Year | Republicans | Republicans (%) | Democrats | Democrats (%) | Balance of power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 |
50.0% | 1 |
50.0% | Even |
| 2014 | 1 |
50.0% | 1 |
50.0% | Even |
| 2012 | 0 |
0% | 2 |
100% | D+2 |
| 2010 | 0 |
0% | 2 |
100% | D+2 |
| 2008 | 0 |
0% | 2 |
100% | D+2 |
| 2006 | 0 |
0% | 2 |
100% | D+2 |
| 2004 | 0 |
0% | 2 |
100% | D+2 |
| 2002 | 0 |
0% | 2 |
100% | D+2 |
| 2000 | 0 |
0% | 2 |
100% | D+2 |
A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.
Maine Party Control: 1992-2019
Nine years of Democratic trifectas • Two years of Republican trifectas
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| 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 |
| 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 |
Demographic data for Maine
| Maine | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|
| Total population: | 1,329,453 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 30,843 | 3,531,905 |
| Gender | ||
| Female: | 51.1% | 50.8% |
| 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) for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Maine. | ||
As of July 2016, Maine's three largest cities were Portland (pop. est. 65,000), Lewiston (pop. est. 35,000), and Bangor (pop. est. 30,000).
