- Democratic Gov. Janet Mills defeated Republican Paul LePage in Maine's gubernatorial race.
- The state has voted for the Democratic candidate in every presidential election cycle since 1992.
Democratic incumbent Gov. Janet Mills defeated Republican Paul LePage — the state's former governor — in Maine's gubernatorial election.
Polls closed in the state at 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
Maine's gubernatorial candidates
Mills is the 75th governor of Maine. Elected in 2018, she became the state's first female governor. Prior to being elected governor, she served as the state's attorney general — the first and only female to hold the job — for eight years. She also served as vice chair of the Maine Democratic Party and in the Maine House of Representatives.
Mills has expressed strong support for abortion rights. In the wake of the Supreme Court's decision this year to overturn Roe v. Wade, she issued an executive order that protects abortion access for women in Maine.
"A woman's right to choose is just that – a woman's, not a politician's," Mills said in a statement. "This Executive Order makes clear that access to reproductive health care, and the health care providers who offer it, will be protected by my Administration."
LePage, Mills' challenger, is the former governor of Maine, serving from 2011 to 2019. He was first elected in 2010, when Republicans took control of the state House and state Senate, and was later reelected in 2014. LePage, who received national attention for comments he's made over the years about race, gender, sex, and violence, was blocked by Maine's term limits to run for a third consecutive term.
Prior to his election as governor, LePage served on the Waterville City Council and later as mayor of Waterville.
He and Mills both faced no primary opposition.
Maine's voting history
President Joe Biden had a 9 percentage point margin of victory in 2020, and the state has voted for the Democratic candidate in every presidential election cycle since 1992.
The money race
According to Maine Public, Mills has raised $4.9 million, spent $3.4 million, and has $1.4 million on hand, as of September 20. Her opponent, LePage, has raised $2.2 million, spent $905,000, and has $1.3 million in cash on hand, as of September 20.
What experts say
The race between Mills and LePage is rated as "lean Democratic" by Inside Elections, "lean Democratic" by The Cook Political Report, and "leans Democratic" by Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics.