Democratic Rep. Jared Golden, who represents Maine's Second Congressional District, now faces a primary challenge as he seeks re-election in the 2026 midterms. ((AP Photo/David Sharp, File))
Golden is currently facing off with former two-term Republican Gov. Paul LePage, who right now has a clear glidepath to the GOP nomination in Maine, and the race between LePage and Golden is expected to be extremely competitive.
"There's bad and even worse. Jared Golden and Paul LePage," the narrator in Dunlap's campaign launch video argues.
The narrator highlights that "Golden voted against unemployment benefits, child tax credits, and more affordable healthcare" and that "Golden even said he was ‘OK with’ Donald Trump becoming president again.
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Dunlap, speaking to the camera, says: "I'm not OK with Donald Trump as president. That's why I'm running for Congress."
And he touted that during his tenure as Maine Secretary of State, "I took Trump and his MAGA allies to court and I won."
Former Republican Gov. Paul LePage of Maine, interviewed by Fox News Digital on May 7, 2025 in Lewiston, Maine, is running for the U.S. House in 2026 in the state's 2nd Congressional District (Paul Steinhauser - Fox News )
Many national Democrats believe that Golden is uniquely positioned to hold the seat in Maine's 2nd Congressional District, which is geographically the largest congressional district east of the Mississippi River.
And a Democratic source familiar with the race confirmed to Fox News that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee "expressed to both Dunlap and state party leadership that unless Golden is the nominee, it could jeopardize the seat, national investment in Maine, and therefore the path to the majority."
The rival National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) quickly weighed in on the development in the Democratic primary.
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"Democrat Matt Dunlap's entrance into this race proves what we've been saying all along: Serial Flip-Flopper Jared Golden has betrayed Mainers at every turn, and his own party is done with his spineless, self-serving ways. Golden has got to go, and even Democrats know it," NRCC Spokeswoman Maureen O'Toole claimed in a statement.
And Maine GOP Chairman Jim Deyermond, in a statement, argued that "for years, ordinary Mainers have been left behind by Jared Golden as he flip-flops to try and hold his seat. Golden almost never makes a public appearance in Maine and often leaves people wondering where he is."
Fox News' Deirdre Heavey contributed to this report
Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in the swing state of New Hampshire. He covers the campaign trail from coast to coast."
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/vulnerable-house-dem-dismisses-primary-challenger-race-heats-up-30-year-party-crony