# 2018 Maine gubernatorial election

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The 2018 Maine gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the governor of Maine. It occurred along with elections for the U.S. Senate, U.S. House, and other state and local elections. Incumbent Republican governor Paul LePage was term-limited and could not seek re-election to a third consecutive term; he later unsuccessfully sought a third term in 2022. This was one of eight Republican-held governorships up for election in a state carried by Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election.
The primaries for this election were the first in Maine to be conducted with ranked choice voting (RCV), as opposed to a simple plurality, after voters passed a citizen referendum approving the change in 2016. An advisory opinion by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court held that RCV would be unconstitutional for general elections for governor and the state legislature. This led state legislators to vote to delay its implementation pending approval of a state constitutional amendment. Backers of a "people's veto" turned in enough signatures to suspend this law until a June referendum vote, which restored RCV for future primary and congressional elections.
Governor Paul LePage threatened not to certify the results of the primary elections, saying he would "leave it up to the courts to decide." He also called the use of ranked-choice voting the "most horrific thing in the world." Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap said the results would be binding regardless of whether LePage certified them.
The Republican nominee was businessman and 2010 independent candidate for governor Shawn Moody. The Democratic candidate was Attorney General Janet Mills. State Treasurer Terry Hayes and businessman Alan Caron had qualified for the ballot as independents, though Caron dropped out on October 29 and endorsed Mills. Former state senator and former mayor of Lewiston and Auburn John Jenkins and perennial candidate Kenneth Capron ran write-in campaigns.
Mills defeated Moody and Hayes with a majority to become the first female governor of Maine. This was the first election since 2006 that Maine elected a Democratic governor. Mills was also the first gubernatorial candidate to win at least 50% of the vote since Angus King in 1998, and the first non-incumbent to do so since Kenneth M. Curtis in 1966. Mills also became the first Maine gubernatorial candidate to earn 300,000 votes and received more votes for governor than any other candidate in state history. This also marks the first gubernatorial election since 1982 that a Democrat would win a majority of the popular vote.

## Background

Incumbent Republican Paul LePage was term-limited, having been elected twice consecutively in 2010 and 2014. LePage did not win a majority of the vote either time (receiving 37.6% in a crowded four-way race in 2010 and 48.2% in a three-way race in 2014), with Democrats accusing independent candidate Eliot Cutler of splitting the anti-LePage vote in both instances, though Cutler finished closer to LePage than Democratic candidate Libby Mitchell in the 2010 election.
Maine's history of governors elected without majorities, including LePage, was one impetus for the citizen's referendum to implement ranked choice voting. Indeed, the last time a gubernatorial candidate received a majority of the vote was in 1998, when incumbent governor (and current United States Senator) Angus King, an independent, won reelection with 58.6% of the vote. The last time a non-incumbent candidate received more than 50% of the vote was the 1966 gubernatorial election, which Democrat Kenneth M. Curtis won over incumbent Republican John H. Reed with 53.1% of the vote.
Though ranked-choice voting was approved by voters in a 2016 referendum, the Maine Legislature voted to delay and potentially repeal RCV for all elections after an advisory opinion by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled it unconstitutional for general elections for state offices. RCV supporters succeeded in a people's veto effort to prevent the delay, which suspends it until a June 2018 referendum vote. RCV supporters were victorious in the June referendum, and ranked-choice voting will remain in place for state and federal primaries and federal general elections.

## Republican primary

Speculation that U.S. Senator Susan Collins was considering running for governor arose during the 2015 Maine Legislative session when Representative Matt Moonen (D-Portland) introduced a bill to strip the governor (LePage at the time) of the power to appoint replacement U.S. Senators in the event of a vacancy and to instead have a special primary and general election. Moonen denied that he was motivated by Collins's possible candidacy, saying he was interested only in counterbalancing Republican-sponsored bills to change how the Maine Attorney General and Maine Secretary of State are chosen. Moonen said Collins had told him speculation about her running for governor was "silly." Collins, who was the 1994 Republican nominee for Governor, told MPBN News on January 4, 2016, that though she was "baffled" by the rumors about her being interested in running for governor, many had encouraged her to run, and she would not rule it out. In October 2017, Collins said she would not run for governor in 2018.
No Republican candidate ruled out challenging the results of a ranked-choice primary in court. Mary Mayhew called for the immediate repeal of RCV, calling it a "scam" and "probably illegal".
The Maine Republican Party filed a federal lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Bangor on May 4, 2018, seeking to bar the use of RCV for its own primary on the grounds that requiring the party to use it violates its First Amendment rights to choose its nominee as it sees fit. U.S. District Court Judge Jon Levy rejected the suit on May 29.

### Candidates
#### Nominated

* Shawn Moody, businessman and independent candidate for governor in 2010

#### Eliminated in primary

* Ken Fredette, state house minority leader
* Garrett Mason, state senate majority leader
* Mary Mayhew, former commissioner of the Maine Department of Health and Human Services

#### Withdrawn

* Deril Stubenrod, write-in candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2014
* Mike Thibodeau, Maine Senate president

#### Declined

* Rick Bennett, former chairman of the Maine Republican Party, former President of the Maine Senate, candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2012 and nominee for ME-02 in 1994
* Susan Collins, U.S. senator and nominee for governor in 1994
* Nick Isgro, Mayor of Waterville
* Bruce Poliquin, U.S. representative (ran for reelection)
* Peter Vigue, businessman

### Endorsements

Federal politicians
* Marco Rubio, United States senator from Florida and 2016 presidential candidate
Federal politicians
* Ted Cruz, United States senator from Texas and 2016 presidential candidate
Federal politicians
* Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
Local and state politicians
* Susan Austin, state representative
* Richard Bradstreet, state representative
* Richard Campbell, state representative
* Paul Chace, state representative
* Garrel Craig, state representative
* Scott Cyrway, state senator
* Robert Foley, state representative
* Phyllis Ginzler, state representative
* James Hamper, state senator
* Jeffery Hanley, state representative
* Matthew Harrington, state representative
* Stephanie Hawke, state representative
* Gary Hilliard, state representative
* Chris Johansen, state representative
* Jonathan Kinney, state representative
* Bob Macdonald, former mayor of Lewiston
* Richard Malaby, state representative
* Beth O'Connor, state representative
* Lester Ordway, state representative
* Michael Perkins, state representative
* John Picchiotti, state representative
* Jeffrey Pierce, state representative
* Dwayne Prescott, state representative
* Deborah Sanderson, state representative
* H. Stedman Seavey, state representative
* Abden Simmons, state representative
* Paula Sutton, state representative
* Timothy Theriault, state representative
* Karleton Ward, state representative
Other individuals
* Adrienne Bennett, former spokesperson for governor Paul LePage
Individuals
* Rick Bennett, former president of the Maine Senate, former chair of the Maine Republican Party
* Ann LePage, First Lady of Maine
Newspapers
* Bangor Daily News

### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | RCV round | Ken Fredette | Garrett Mason | Mary Mayhew | Shawn Moody | Undecided |
| SurveyUSA | April 26 – May 1, 2018 | 546 | ± 4.8% | Round 1 | 10% | 15% | 19% | 34% | 22% |
| SurveyUSA | April 26 – May 1, 2018 | 546 | ± 4.8% | Round 2 | – | 25% | 26% | 49% | – |
| SurveyUSA | April 26 – May 1, 2018 | 546 | ± 4.8% | Round 3 | – | – | 34% | 65% | – |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Susan Collins | Mary Mayhew | Other | Undecided |
| Public Policy Polling | August 1–2, 2017 | 672 | – | 33% | 44% | – | 23% |
| Public Policy Polling | August 1–2, 2017 | 672 | – | 28% | – | 62% | 10% |

### Debate

| Dates | Location | Fredette | Mason | Mayhew | Moody | Link |
| June 9, 2018 | | Participant | Participant | Participant | Participant | Full debate - PBS |

### Results

Republican primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Shawn Moody | 53,436 | 52.6 |
| | Republican | Garrett Mason | 21,571 | 21.2 |
| | Republican | Mary Mayhew | 14,034 | 13.8 |
| | Republican | Blank ballots | 7,203 | 7.1 |
| | Republican | Ken Fredette | 5,341 | 5.3 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 101,585 | 100.0 |

## Democratic primary

Almost all Democratic candidates said that they would abide by the results of the ranked-choice primary, with only Janet Mills refusing to comment on the issue because it was being heard by the courts.

### Candidates
#### Nominated

* Janet Mills, Maine Attorney General

#### Eliminated in primary

* Adam Cote, attorney, Iraq War veteran and candidate for ME-01 in 2008
* Donna Dion, former mayor of Biddeford
* Mark Dion, state senator and former Cumberland County Sheriff
* Mark Eves, former Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives
* Diane Russell, former state representative
* Betsy Sweet, former director of the Maine Women's Lobby

#### Failed to make ballot

* Dominic A. Crocitto
* Steve DeAngelis, schoolteacher
* J. Martin Vachon

#### Withdrawn

* James Boyle, former state senator
* Patrick Eisenhart, retired United States Coast Guard Commander
* Sean Faircloth, former mayor of Bangor and former state senator
* Kenneth Forrest Pinet

#### Declined

* Justin Alfond, former state senator and former President of the Maine Senate
* Yellow Light Breen, CEO of the Maine Development Foundation
* Adam Goode, former state representative
* Troy Jackson, State Senate Minority Leader
* Stephen King, author
* Chellie Pingree, U.S. Representative
* Hannah Pingree, former Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives
* Lucas St. Clair, nonprofit executive (ran for ME-02)

### Endorsements

All endorsers are Democrats unless otherwise specified.
Federal politicians
* Tom Allen, former US Representative for ME-01, nominee for US Senate in 2008
Local and state politicians
* Justin Alfond, former President of the Maine Senate
* Peter Baldacci, Penobscot County Commissioner
* Frank Bemis, former Presque Isle Town Council Chair
* Todd Brackett, Sheriff of Lincoln County
* Michael Brennan, former mayor of Portland, former state senator, candidate for ME-01 in 2008
* Marilyn Canavan, state representative
* Alan Casavant, Mayor of Biddeford, former state representative
* Justin Chenette, state senator
* Janice Cooper, state representative
* Tom Cote, Mayor of Sanford
* Annie Graham, former state representative
* Jon Hinck, former state representative and former Portland City Councillor
* Adam Lee, former Auburn City Councillor
* David Lemoine, former state representative
* Nate Libby, state senator, Senate Minority Whip
* Colleen Madigan, state representative
* Anne-Marie Mastraccio, state representative
* Patrick K. McGowan, former state representative, candidate for Governor in 2010, nominee for ME-02 in 1990 and 1992, former Small Business Administration Regional Administrator
* Cynthia Mehnert, Orono Town Councillor
* Cecil Munson, former Augusta City Councillor
* Kevin O'Connell, Brewer City Councillor
* Peter O'Donnell, former Mayor of Portland
* Patrick Paradis, former state representative and former Augusta City Councillor
* Josh Plourde, former Bangor City Councillor
* Christina Riley, state representative
* David Rollins, Mayor of Augusta
* Michael Sanphy, Mayor of Westbrook
* Stephen Stanley, state representative
* Spencer Thibodeau, Portland City Councillor
* Dan Tremble, Bangor City Councillor
* Anna Turcotte, Westbrook City Councillor
* Linda Valentino, state senator
* Wayne Werts, former state representative
Organizations
* Maine Council of Machinists
Newspapers
* Bangor Daily News
Individuals
* Timothy Simons, actor
Local and state politicians
* Benjamin Collings, state representative
Other individuals
* Francine Breton, former Cumberland County Jail Administrator
* Moses Sebunya, United States Department of Homeland Security, civil rights activist, former President of the NAACP in Maine
Local and state politicians
* Joe Baldacci, former Bangor City Councillor
* Seth Berry, state representative
* Dale Denno, state representative
* Patrick Eisenhart, former gubernatorial candidate (2018)
* Sean Faircloth, Bangor City Councillor, former Mayor of Bangor, former state senator, former gubernatorial candidate (2018)
* Richard Farnsworth, state representative
* Ryan Fecteau, state representative
* Roger Fuller, state representative
* Drew Gattine, state representative
* Anne Haskell, former state senator
* Erik Jorgensen, state representative
* Chuck Kruger, former state representative
* Thomas Longstaff, state representative
* Louis Luchini, state representative
* Jay McCreight, state representative
* Jennifer Ellen Parker, state representative
* Deane Rykerson, state representative
* Linda Sanborn, former state representative
* John Alden Spear, state representative
* Ben Sprague, Mayor of Bangor
* Joan Welsh, former state representative
Individuals
* Adam Lee, small business owner and environmental activist
* Warren Silver, former Maine Supreme Judicial Court justice
Organizations
* Iron Workers Local 7
* Working Families Party (also endorsed Sweet and Russell)
Local and state politicians
* Joseph E. Brennan, former governor of Maine (1979–1987), former US Representative for Maine's 1st congressional district (1987–1991), former Maine Attorney General (1975-1979), nominee for Governor in 1990 and 1994, nominee for US Senate in 1996, candidate for Governor in 1974
* Lynn Bromley, former state senator
* Emily Cain, former state senator, nominee for ME-02 in 2014 and 2016, executive director of EMILY's List
* Margaret Craven, former state senator
* Jerry Davis, former state representative
* Lois Galgay Reckitt, state representative
* Dawn Hill, state senator
* Helen Rankin, former state representative
Other individuals
* Maura Healey, Massachusetts Attorney General
* Nick Wilson, executive director, Maine Gun Safety Coalition
Organizations
* Emily's List
Organizations
* Working Families Party (also endorsed Sweet and Eves)
Local and state politicians
* Everett "Brownie" Carson, state senator
* Clare Davitt, Bangor City Councillor
* Beth Edmonds, former President of the Maine Senate
* Karen Kusiak, former state representative, candidate for State Senate
* Dale McCormick, former Maine State Treasurer, former state senator, candidate for ME-01 in 1996
* Ethan Strimling, Mayor of Portland, former state senator, candidate for ME-01 in 2008
* Mike Sylvester, state representative
* Charlotte Warren, state representative
* Barb Wood, former Portland City Councillor, vice president of the Equality Maine Foundation
Other individuals
* Ben Cohen, cofounder, Ben & Jerry's
* Cenk Uygur, journalist, host of The Young Turks
* Marianne Williamson, writer
Organizations
* Southern Maine Democratic Socialists of America
* Working Families Party (also endorsed Eves and Russell)

### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | RCV round | Adam Cote | Donna Dion | Mark Dion | Mark Eves | Janet Mills | Diane Russell | Betsy Sweet | Undecided |
| SurveyUSA | April 26 – May 1, 2018 | 649 | ± 4.2% | Round 1 | 9% | 2% | 10% | 16% | 32% | 4% | 5% | 24% |
| SurveyUSA | April 26 – May 1, 2018 | 649 | ± 4.2% | Round 2 | 13% | – | 13% | 20% | 42% | 5% | 6% | |
| SurveyUSA | April 26 – May 1, 2018 | 649 | ± 4.2% | Round 3 | 13% | – | 13% | 22% | 43% | – | 8% | |
| SurveyUSA | April 26 – May 1, 2018 | 649 | ± 4.2% | Round 4 | 14% | – | 15% | 24% | 48% | – | – | |
| SurveyUSA | April 26 – May 1, 2018 | 649 | ± 4.2% | Round 5 | – | – | 19% | 26% | 55% | – | – | |

### Results

Democratic primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 2 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 3 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 4 |
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Transfer | Votes | % | Transfer | Votes | % | Transfer | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Janet Mills | 41,735 | 33.1% | + 2,307 | 44,042 | 35.5% | + 5,903 | 49,945 | 40.8% | + 13,439 | 63,384 | 54.1% |
| | Democratic | Adam Cote | 35,478 | 28.1% | + 2,065 | 37,543 | 30.2% | + 5,080 | 42,623 | 34.8% | + 11,243 | 53,866 | 45.9% |
| | Democratic | Betsy Sweet | 20,767 | 16.5% | + 2,220 | 22,987 | 18.5% | + 6,957 | 29,944 | 24.4% | - 29,944 | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| | Democratic | Mark Eves | 17,887 | 14.2% | + 1,634 | 19,521 | 15.7% | - 19,521 | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| | Democratic | Mark Dion | 5,200 | 4.1% | - 5,200 | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| | Democratic | Diane Russell | 2,728 | 2.2% | - 2,728 | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| | Democratic | Donna Dion | 1,596 | 1.3% | - 1,596 | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| | Democratic | Write-ins | 748 | 0.6% | - 748 | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated | Eliminated |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 132,250 | 100.0% |

## Green Independent primary
### Candidates
#### Withdrawn

* Jay Parker Dresser, candidate for ME-02 in 2016
* Betsy Marsano, activist

## Libertarian primary
### Candidates
#### Withdrawn

* Gilbert P. Doughty
* Richard Light

## Independents
### Candidates
#### Declared

* Kenneth A. Capron, perennial candidate, systems analyst and fraud investigator^ (write-in candidate)
* Terry Hayes, Maine State Treasurer
* John Jenkins, former mayor of Lewiston, former mayor of Auburn and former Democratic state senator^ (write-in candidate)
$^^$ Capron and Jenkins failed to qualify for the ballot, but continued their campaigns as write-in candidates.

#### Withdrawn

* Ethan Alcorn, businessman (did not qualify)
* Alan Caron, president and CEO of Envision Maine (endorsed Mills)
* Aaron D. Chadbourne, writer and activist (write-in candidate, endorsed Moody)

#### Failed to make ballot

* Karmo Sanders, actress

#### Declined

* Eliot Cutler, attorney and candidate for governor in 2010 and 2014
* Angus King, U.S. Senator and former governor (running for re-election)
* Peter Vigue, businessman
* Dick Woodbury, former state senator

## General election

After the primaries, most prediction models had the race as a tossup, noting Paul LePage's two victories and Hillary Clinton's narrow margin of victory in the state in the 2016 presidential election. Others considered it to be a pick-up opportunity for the Democrats. Both Moody and Mills received the backing of outside money, with one PAC spending in excess of $1 million on television advertising in the state to support Mills's candidacy.
On October 12, Jonathan Martin of The New York Times published an article detailing a sex discrimination complaint filed against Moody and his business in 2006, which Moody settled for $20,000, resulting in the complaint being withdrawn. The complaint alleged that Moody went to the residence of a female employee and fired her for having a child just days after delivering the child via an emergency caesarean section. Moody denied the allegation through a spokesperson and later on Twitter.
Though the first poll of the race saw Mills and Moody tied for first place with Hayes and Caron lagging behind, by the end of October, four different polls were released, each showing Mills with an eight-point lead over Moody. FiveThirtyEight declared the race "Likely D" when its gubernatorial projections were released in October, though other prediction models maintained the race as a tossup.
On October 29, in a press conference at the main branch of the Portland Public Library, Caron dropped out of the race and endorsed Mills. His name remained on the ballot, but any votes cast for him were regarded as blank.
Shortly before 10 pm on election night, Hayes conceded the race. At 12:15 am on November 7, Moody conceded the race to Mills, and shortly thereafter Mills declared victory at Democratic headquarters in Portland. Mills became the first Maine gubernatorial candidate to receive more than 300,000 votes in a single election. Mills also became the first Maine gubernatorial candidate to win a majority of the vote since Angus King won nearly 59% of the vote in his re-election bid in 1998, and became the first candidate to win a majority of the popular vote for a first term since Kenneth M. Curtis defeated incumbent governor John H. Reed in 1966, though Curtis and Reed were the only candidates in that race.
The general election used plurality voting, not ranked-choice voting.

### Predictions

| Source | Ranking | As of |
| The Cook Political Report | Tossup | October 26, 2018 |
| The Washington Post | Tossup | November 5, 2018 |
| FiveThirtyEight | Likely D (flip) | November 5, 2018 |
| Rothenberg Political Report | Tilt D (flip) | November 1, 2018 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball | Lean D (flip) | November 5, 2018 |
| RealClearPolitics | Lean D (flip) | November 4, 2018 |
| Daily Kos | Tossup | November 5, 2018 |
| Fox News | Tossup | November 5, 2018 |
| Politico | Tossup | November 5, 2018 |
| Governing | Tossup | November 5, 2018 |

#### Notes

* ↑ The Fox News Midterm Power Rankings uniquely does not contain a category for Safe/Solid races

### Endorsements

* Endorsements in bold were made after the primaries on June 12, 2018.
Local and state politicians
* Kent Ackley, state representative (I–Monmouth)
* Linda Baker, former state senator (R–Topsham)
* Kevin Battle, state representative (I–South Portland)
* Bobbi Beavers, former state representative (D–South Berwick)
* Kerri Bickford, former state representative (R–Topsham)
* Andrea Boland, former state representative (D–Sanford)
* Owen Casas, state representative (I–Rockport)
* Ralph Chapman, state representative (G–Brooksville)
* David Cotta, former state representative (R–China)
* Dean Cray, former state representative (R–Palmyra)
* Dennis Damon, former state representative (D–Trenton)
* Leslie Fossel, former state representative (R–Alna)
* Martin Grohman, state representative (I–Biddeford)
* Denise Harlow, state representative (I–Portland)
* Norm Higgins, state representative (I–Dover-Foxcroft)
* Bryan Kaenrath, former state representative (D–South Portland)
* Gary Knight, former state representative (R–Livermore Falls)
* Leila J. Percy, former state representative (D–Phippsburg)
* Stanley Short, former state representative (D–Pittsfield)
* Ed Suslovic, former Mayor of Portland and former state representative (D–Portland)
* Windol Weaver, former state representative (R–York)
Individuals
* Eliot Cutler, attorney and independent candidate for governor (2010 and 2014)
Organizations
* Unite America
National politicians
* Joe Biden, former Vice President of the United States
* Susan Rice, former United States Ambassador to the United Nations and former National Security Advisor
Local and state politicians
* Justin Alfond, former President of the Maine Senate
* Joseph E. Brennan, former governor of Maine (1979–1987), former US representative for Maine's 1st congressional district (1987–1991), former Maine Attorney General (1975–1979), nominee for governor in 1990 and 1994, nominee for US Senate in 1996, candidate for governor in 1974
* Lynn Bromley, former state senator
* Emily Cain, former state senator, nominee for ME-02 in 2014 and 2016, executive director of EMILY's List
* Alan Caron, 2018 gubernatorial candidate
* Adam Cote, 2018 gubernatorial candidate
* Margaret Craven, former state senator
* Jerry Davis, former state representative
* Mark Dion, state senator and 2018 gubernatorial candidate
* Mark Eves, former Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives and 2018 gubernatorial candidate
* Lois Galgay Reckitt, state representative
* Drew Gattine, state representative
* Dawn Hill, state senator
* Donna Loring, former tribal representative of the Penobscot Nation
* Helen Rankin, former state representative
* Diane Russell, former state representative and 2018 gubernatorial candidate
* Lucas St. Clair, businessman, conservationist and candidate for Maine's 2nd congressional district in 2018
* Betsy Sweet, former director of the Maine Women's Lobby and 2018 gubernatorial candidate
* Spencer Thibodeau, Portland City Councillor
* Charlotte Warren, state representative
Other individuals
* David Farmer, political consultant and journalist
* Maura Healey, Massachusetts Attorney General
* Jay Inslee, Governor of Washington, chairman of the Democratic Governors Association
* Nick Wilson, executive director, Maine Gun Safety Coalition
* Monica Wood, author
Organizations
* Emily's List
* EqualityMaine
* Human Rights Campaign
* League of Conservation Voters
* Planned Parenthood
* Sierra Club
Trade unions
* AFL–CIO
* Maine Education Association
Media
* Bangor Daily News
* The Boston Globe
* Kennebec Journal
* Portland Phoenix
* Portland Press Herald
Local and state politicians
* Rick Bennett, former President of the Maine Senate, former chair of the Maine Republican Party
* Ken Fredette, state house minority leader, 2018 gubernatorial candidate
* Paul LePage, Governor of Maine
* Garrett Mason, state senate majority leader, 2018 gubernatorial candidate
* Mary Mayhew, former director the Maine Department of Health and Human Services
* Mike Thibodeau, President of the Maine Senate, 2018 gubernatorial candidate
Other individuals
* Adrienne Bennett, former spokesperson for Governor Paul LePage
* Aaron D. Chadbourne, writer and activist, former write-in candidate for governor
* Matt DiBenedetto, NASCAR driver
* Ann LePage, first lady of Maine
Organizations
* Associated Builders and Contractors of Maine
* Sportman's Alliance of Maine

### Debates

| Dates | Location | Mills | Moody | Hayes | Caron | Link |
| October 10, 2018 | Portland, Maine | Participant | Participant | Participant | Participant | Full debate - C-SPAN |
| October 25, 2018 | Augusta, Maine | Participant | Participant | Participant | Participant | Full debate - C-SPAN |
| November 1, 2018 | Bangor, Maine | Participant | Participant | Participant | Participant | Full debate - PBS |

### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Shawn Moody (R) | Janet Mills (D) | Terry Hayes (I) | Alan Caron (I) | Other | Undecided |
| Slingshot Strategies (I-Hayes) | November 1, 2018 | 518 | – | 38% | 55% | 7% | – | – | – |
| Emerson College | October 27–29, 2018 | 883 | ± 3.5% | 42% | 50% | – | – | 5% | 4% |
| Pan Atlantic Research | October 1–7, 2018 | 500 | ± 4.4% | 36% | 44% | 8% | 2% | – | 10% |
| Change Research | September 30 – October 1, 2018 | 801 | – | 44% | 52% | – | – | – | – |
| Slingshot Strategies (I-Hayes) | September 26–30, 2018 | 600 | – | 33% | 41% | 10% | 2% | 0% | 13% |
| Suffolk University | August 2–6, 2018 | 500 | ± 4.4% | 39% | 39% | 4% | 3% | – | 16% |
if ranked-choice voting were used
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Shawn Moody (R) | Janet Mills (D) | Terry Hayes (I) | Alan Caron (I) | Undecided |
| Slingshot Strategies (I-Hayes) | November 1, 2018 | 518 | – | 37% | 49% | 11% | – | 3% |
| Slingshot Strategies (I-Hayes) | September 26–30, 2018 | 600 | – | 42% | 45% | 9% | 4% | – |

### Results

Maine gubernatorial election, 2018 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Democratic | Janet Mills | 320,962 | 50.89% | +7.52% |
| | Republican | Shawn Moody | 272,311 | 43.18% | −5.01% |
| | Independent | Terry Hayes | 37,268 | 5.91% | N/A |
| | Write-in | Write-in | 126 | 0.02% | N/A |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 630,667 | 100.00% | N/A |
| | Democratic gain from Republican | Democratic gain from Republican | Democratic gain from Republican | Democratic gain from Republican | Democratic gain from Republican |

#### By county

| | Janet Mills (Democratic) | Janet Mills (Democratic) | Shawn Moody (Republican) | Shawn Moody (Republican) | Terry Hayes (Independent) | Terry Hayes (Independent) | Margin | Margin | Total |
| County | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes |
| Androscoggin | 19,801 | 43.96% | 21,903 | 48.63% | 3,337 | 7.41% | -2,102 | -4.67% | 45,041 |
| Aroostook | 10,360 | 38.23% | 14,498 | 53.51% | 2,238 | 8.26% | -4,138 | -15.28% | 27,096 |
| Cumberland | 95,346 | 61.19% | 53,088 | 34.07% | 7,373 | 4.73% | 42,258 | 27.12% | 155,807 |
| Franklin | 7,083 | 50.32% | 6,254 | 44.43% | 738 | 5.24% | 829 | 5.89% | 14,075 |
| Hancock | 15,228 | 54.13% | 11,356 | 40.37% | 1,549 | 5.51% | 3,872 | 13.76% | 28,133 |
| Kennebec | 26,777 | 47.86% | 25,752 | 46.03% | 3,422 | 6.12% | 1,025 | 1.83% | 55,951 |
| Knox | 11,691 | 57.39% | 7,694 | 37.77% | 985 | 4.84% | 3,997 | 19.62% | 20,370 |
| Lincoln | 9,676 | 50.88% | 8,324 | 43.77% | 1,019 | 5.36% | 1,352 | 7.11% | 19,019 |
| Oxford | 10,510 | 41.06% | 12,342 | 48.22% | 2,742 | 10.71% | -1,832 | -7.16% | 25,594 |
| Penobscot | 29,004 | 45.17% | 31,572 | 49.17% | 3,640 | 5.67% | -2,568 | -4.00% | 64,216 |
| Piscataquis | 2,887 | 38.70% | 4,109 | 55.08% | 464 | 6.22% | -1,222 | -16.38% | 7,460 |
| Sagadahoc | 10,152 | 53.22% | 7,714 | 40.44% | 1,210 | 6.34% | 2,438 | 12.78% | 19,076 |
| Somerset | 8,524 | 41.03% | 11,048 | 53.18% | 1,204 | 5.80% | -2,524 | -12.15% | 20,776 |
| Waldo | 10,109 | 51.61% | 8,397 | 42.87% | 1,083 | 5.53% | 1,712 | 8.74% | 19,589 |
| Washington | 5,736 | 43.99% | 6,533 | 50.10% | 770 | 5.91% | -797 | -6.11% | 13,039 |
| York | 48,078 | 50.45% | 41,727 | 43.79% | 5,494 | 5.77% | 6,351 | 6.66% | 95,299 |
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
* Franklin (largest town: Farmington)
* Hancock (largest town: Ellsworth)
* Kennebec (largest town: Augusta)
* Lincoln (largest town: Waldoboro)
* Sagadahoc (largest town: Bath)
* Waldo (largest town: Belfast)
* York (largest town: Biddeford)

#### By congressional district

Mills won 1 of the 2 congressional districts. Moody won the other, which elected a Democrat.
| District | Mills | Moody | Hayes | Representative |
| 1st | 55.89% | 38.85% | 5.26% | Chellie Pingree |
| 2nd | 44.99% | 48.34% | 6.68% | Jared Golden |