Maine House race to be decided by ranked-choice

Maine's closely watched 2nd Congressional District race will be decided by ranked-choice voting with neither of the top two candidates clearing the 50% majority threshold required to win the seat through Election Day voting.

With over 90% of votes counted, incumbent Democratic Rep. Jared Golden was ahead of former Republican Congressman Bruce Poliquin 48% to 42%, according to preliminary results. Tiffany Bond, an independent candidate, trailed with about 7% of the vote.

Because neither candidate received 50% of the vote, the race will be decided by a ranked-choice runoff next Tuesday, Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said.

Bellows said the ranked-choice tabulation is open to the public and will be conducted at a Maine State Police building in Augusta. The proceedings will be live-streamed on the Secretary of State's Facebook page.

Maine uses ranked choice-voting in congressional elections, which asks voters to rank candidates in order of their preference on the ballot. If nobody gets a majority of the votes in the first round, the candidate with the least votes is eliminated and the votes are reallocated until someone wins a majority.

In this situation, the second-choice candidates' votes for third-place, Bond will be redistributed to Golden and Poliquin, until one of them wins a majority of the vote.

Golden, a former Marine veteran, narrowly beat Poliquin in 2018, a race that was ultimately decided by ranked-choice voting more than a week after the election.

Poliquin, who represented the 2nd Congressional District from 2015-19, edged out fellow Republican Liz Caruso in the June state primary to win the GOP's nomination.

Like other states where control of Congress would be influenced, Democratic President Joe Biden's low favorability rating has loomed large over the congressional race.

On the campaign trail, Poliquin focused on record high inflation and other pocketbook issues, and criticized Golden over his support for Biden’s economic policies.

Golden pointed to his record of bucking Biden on federal spending and other major issues, making the case to voters that he isn't a sure vote for Democratic leaders.

The 2nd District, one of Maine’s two congressional seats, is considered competitive and is being closely watched by political observers as Republicans push to retake the House.

Former Republican President Donald Trump carried the 2nd District handily in the 2020 elections, peeling off one the state's four electoral votes.

Both candidates benefitted from outside spending by national Republican and Democratic groups with control of Congress in the balance.

In Maine's other congressional district, incumbent U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, a Democrat, fended off a challenge from Ed Thelander, a Republican and former Navy SEAL.