2014 United States Senate election in Maine

The 2014 United States Senate election in Maine took place on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins, who had served in the position since 1997, won election to a fourth term in office with 68.5% of the vote. The primary elections were held on June 10, 2014. This was the only Republican-held Senate seat up for election in a state that Barack Obama won in the 2012 presidential election.

As of , this was the last time a Republican won the counties of Cumberland and Knox in a statewide election, and the last time any party carried every county in Maine.

Republican primary Candidates Declared Susan Collins, incumbent U.S. senator

Write-in candidates Erick Bennett, conservative activist and director of the Maine Equal Rights Center (unenrolled as a Republican, see Campaign section)

Declined Scott D'Amboise, former Lisbon Falls selectman and candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2012 Bruce Poliquin, former state treasurer, candidate for governor in 2010 and candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2012 (ran for ME-02) Mark Willis, former Maine Republican national committeeman

Campaign Maine Republican Party Chairman Rick Bennett was critical of Erick Bennett's campaign, stating that he did not believe Erick would get the necessary signatures to get on the ballot. After making it clear the two men are not related, Rick felt that this would be due to Erick's views as expressed on his Facebook page. These included referring to U.S. Representative Mike Michaud as a "closet homo" and criticism of Nelson Mandela, comparing him to Stalin and Karl Marx. Furthermore, Erick Bennett was convicted in 2003 of assaulting his wife, which was upheld by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, though he maintained his innocence. Rick Bennett stated that Erick's views "[did] not represent the views of the Republican Party".

Erick Bennett announced before the primary filing deadline on March 17 that he had left the Republican Party and would run as an independent. Maine law, however, requires that an independent candidate must have not been in a political party by March 1 of the election year in order to run as an independent, meaning Bennett could not legally run as such. The Kennebec Journal reported that Bennett was a write-in candidate for the Republican nomination.

On April 3, 2014, Collins' campaign announced the joint endorsement of Bath Iron Works' labor unions, which the campaign claimed was the first time the unions issued a joint endorsement as well as the first time they endorsed a Republican candidate for federal office.

Collins ultimately defeated Bellows in a landslide, carrying all 16 counties, both congressional districts, and nearly every municipality in the state. Bellows only won the heavily Democratic cities of Portland, Bar Harbor, and Hallowell, as well as a handful of small communities in extremely rural northern and western Maine with only a few dozen votes between them, such as Grand Falls Township and Elliottsville.

Polling

Poll source SusanCollins BrucePoliquin UndecidedPublic Policy PollingPublic Policy Polling August 23–25, 2013 321 ± 5.5% 64% 24% 12%

Poll source SusanCollins CharlieSummers Other UndecidedPublic Policy PollingPublic Policy Polling January 18–20, 2013 430 ± 4.7% 58% 31% — 11%

Poll source SusanCollins conservative Other UndecidedPublic Policy Polling January 18–20, 2013 430 ± 4.7% 49% 46% — 6%Public Policy Polling August 23–25, 2013 321 ± 5.5% 47% 48% — 5%Public Policy PollingPublic Policy Polling November 8–11, 2013 331 ± 5.4% 48% 44% — 7%

Results

Democratic primary Candidates Declared Shenna Bellows, former executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Maine

Declined Emily Cain, state senator (ran for ME-02) Mike Michaud, U.S. representative (ran for governor)

Results

Independents To qualify as an independent candidate for the U.S. Senate in Maine, a person needs to submit at least 4,000 valid signatures to the secretary of state by June 1. Any independent candidate must not have been enrolled in a political party after March 1 of the year the election occurs.

Former Republican candidate Erick Bennett announced just before the March 17 primary filing deadline that he had left the Republican Party and would run as an independent, but Maine law required him to have unenrolled as a Republican by March 1 to do so. Therefore, he could not legally run as an independent.

Candidates Declared Erick Bennett, conservative activist and director of the Maine Equal Rights Center (unenrolled as a Republican, see Campaign section)

Declined Mike Turcotte, adjunct professor at Eastern Maine Community College

General election Background Heading into the 2014 cycle, only 12 U.S. Senate elections had involved two major party female nominees in U.S. history.

Candidates Shenna Bellows (Democratic), former executive director of the Maine ACLU Susan Collins (Republican), incumbent U.S. senator

Endorsements

Predictions Source Ranking As of The Cook Political Report November 3, 2014 Sabato's Crystal Ball November 3, 2014 Rothenberg Political Report November 3, 2014 Real Clear Politics November 3, 2014

Polling Poll source SusanCollins (R) ShennaBellows (D) Other UndecidedPublic Policy Polling November 8–11, 2013 964 ± 3.2% 59% 20% — 22%Rasmussen ReportsRasmussen Reports April 23–25, 2014 830 ± 3% 60% 24% 6% 9%University of New Hampshire June 12–18, 2014 527 ± 4.3% 72% 17% — 10%CBS News/NYT/YouGovCBS News/NYT/YouGov July 5–24, 2014 1,356 ± 2.7% 63% 28% 2% 6%Public Policy Polling*Public Policy Polling* August 16–18, 2014 679 ± 3.8% 57% 33% — 10%CBS News/NYT/YouGovCBS News/NYT/YouGov August 18 – September 2, 2014 1,202 ± 4% 58% 26% 3% 12%Rasmussen ReportsRasmussen Reports September 3–4, 2014 750 ± 4% 59% 31% 2% 7%University of New HampshireUniversity of New Hampshire September 18–25, 2014 482 ± 4.4% 59% 29% — 11%CBS News/NYT/YouGovCBS News/NYT/YouGov September 20 – October 1, 2014 1,531 ± 3% 57% 33% 1% 9%Pan Atlantic SMSPan Atlantic SMS September 23–29, 2014 400 ± 4.9% 68% 25% — 7%Bangor Daily News/IpsosBangor Daily News/Ipsos October 6–12, 2014 540 LV ± 4.8% 56% 31% 5%Erick Bennett 4%, Other 1% 7% 903 RV ± 3.7% 53% 31% 7%Erick Bennett 5%, other 2% 10%University of New HampshireUniversity of New Hampshire October 15–21, 2014 667 ± 3.8% 65% 30% — 4%Pan Atlantic SMSPan Atlantic SMS October 15–21, 2014 400 ± 4.9% 67% 27% — 7%CBS News/NYT/YouGov October 16–23, 2014 1,177 ± 5% 54% 35% 0% 10%Bangor Daily News/IpsosBangor Daily News/Ipsos October 23–29, 2014 488 ± 5.1% 64% 32% 2% 3%Maine People's Resource CenterMaine People's Resource Center October 31 – November 2, 2014 906 ± 3.25% 57% 37% — 5%

* Internal poll for Shenna Bellows campaign

With Collins Poll source SusanCollins (R) EliotCutler (I) UndecidedPublic Policy Polling August 23–25, 2013 953 ± 3.2% 53% 33% 14%Maine People's Resource CenterMaine People's Resource Center September 8–10, 2013 652 ± 3.84% 58% 28% 14%

Poll source SusanCollins (R) StephenKing (D) UndecidedPublic Policy Polling August 23–25, 2013 953 ± 3.2% 54% 31% 15%

Poll source SusanCollins (R) MikeMichaud (D) UndecidedPublic Policy Polling January 18–20, 2013 1,268 ± 2.8% 54% 36% 10%

Poll source SusanCollins (R) ChelliePingree (D) UndecidedPublic Policy Polling January 18–20, 2013 1,268 ± 2.8% 58% 33% 9%Public Policy Polling August 23–25, 2013 953 ± 3.2% 57% 34% 9%

Poll source SusanCollins (R) GenericDemocrat UndecidedMaine People's Resource Center September 8–10, 2013 652 ± 3.84% 60% 26% 15%

With Poliquin Poll source BrucePoliquin (R) ChelliePingree (D) UndecidedPublic Policy Polling August 23–25, 2013 953 ± 3.2% 33% 47% 20%

With Summers Poll source CharlieSummers (R) MikeMichaud (D) UndecidedPublic Policy Polling January 18–20, 2013 1,268 ± 2.8% 32% 57% 12%

Poll source CharlieSummers (R) ChelliePingree (D) UndecidedPublic Policy Polling January 18–20, 2013 1,268 ± 2.8% 39% 50% 11%

Results

The election was not close, with Collins winning all 16 of Maine's counties, and the election overall by a margin of 223,251 votes.

Results by county CountySusan CollinsRepublicanShenna BellowsDemocraticVarious candidatesOther partiesMarginTotal votes cast#%#%#%#%Androscoggin32,64972.0%12,68028.0%150.01%19,96944.0%45,344Aroostook22,18278.1%6,21721.9%200.1%15,96556.2%28,419Cumberland86,49562.0%53,03638.0%350.01%33,45924.0%139,566Franklin9,84770.0%4,21529.9%150.1%5,63240.1%14,077Hancock16,41163.0%9,61836.9%80.1%6,79326.1%26,037Kennebec38,75269.1%17,28030.8%130.1%21,47238.3%56,045Knox11,62262.3%7,00637.5%370.2%4,61624.8%18,665Lincoln12,32168.5%5,64631.4%160.1%6,67537.1%17,983Oxford18,54571.1%7,51128.8%120.1%11,03442.3%26,068Penobscot46,61773.7%16,62326.3%280.01%29,99446.4%63,268Piscataquis6,17476.8%1,86223.2%60.01%4,31253.6%8,042Sagadahoc12,71569.1%5,66630.8%130.1%7,04938.3%18,394Somerset15,82072.2%6,06827.7%110.1%9,75244.5%21,899Waldo11,81664.9%6,37935.0%70.1%5,43729.9%18,202Washington9,80171.1%3,97828.9%70.01%5,82342.2%13,786York61,31370.2%26,04529.8%240.01%35,26850.4%87,382Totals413,50568.5%190,25431.5%2690.01%223,25137.0%604,028

By congressional district Collins won both of the congressional districts in the state, including one which also elected a Democrat.

District Collins Bellows Representative 66% 34%Chellie Pingree 72%28%Mike Michaud (113th Congress)Bruce Poliquin (114th Congress)

2014 United States Senate election in Maine

Bron en licentie