The 2014 United States Senate election in Maine took place on November 4, 2014. Incumbent

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Senator

Susan Collins Susan Margaret Collins (born December 7, 1952) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Maine. A member of the Republican Party, she has held her seat since 1997 and is Maine's longest-serving member of Con ...

, who has served in the position since 1997, won reelection to a fourth term in office with 68% of the vote. The primary elections were held on June 10, 2014. , this was the last time the Republican candidate won the counties of Cumberland and Knox.

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

, 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 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

Bruce Poliquin Bruce Lee Poliquin (; born November 1, 1953) is an American businessman and politician. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Maine's 2nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2015 to 2019. Poliquin ...

, former State Treasurer, candidate for

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

in 2010 and candidate for the U.S. Senate in

( ran for ME-02) * Mark Willis, former Maine Republican National Committeeman

Campaign

Maine Republican Party The Maine Republican Party is an affiliate of the United States Republican Party in Maine. It was founded in Strong, Maine, on August 7, 1854. The party currently does not control the governor's office or either chamber of the Maine Legislature ...

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 The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

Mike Michaud Michael Herman Michaud (born January 18, 1955) is an American businessman and politician from Maine. Michaud served as the U.S. representative for from 2003 to 2015. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The primarily rural district comprises ...

as a "closet homo" and criticism of Nelson Mandela, comparing him to

Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...

and

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

. Furthermore, Erick Bennett was convicted in 2003 of assaulting his wife, which was upheld by the

Maine Supreme Judicial Court The Maine Supreme Judicial Court is the highest court in the state of Maine's judicial system. It is composed of seven justices, who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Maine Senate. From 1820 until 1839, justices served lifetime a ...

, though he maintains his innocence. Rick Bennett stated that Erick's views "do 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 cannot legally run as such. The ''

Kennebec Journal The ''Kennebec Journal'' is a six-day morning daily newspaper published in Augusta, Maine. It is owned by MaineToday Media, which also publishes the state's largest newspaper, the ''Portland Press Herald''. The newspaper covers Augusta and the s ...

'' has reported that Bennett is a write-in candidate for the Republican nomination. On April 3, 2014, Collins' campaign announced the joint endorsement of

Bath Iron Works Bath Iron Works (BIW) is a major United States shipyard located on the Kennebec River in Bath, Maine, founded in 1884 as Bath Iron Works, Limited. Since 1995, Bath Iron Works has been a subsidiary of General Dynamics. It is the fifth-largest ...

' 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.

Polling

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

* Shenna Bellows, former executive director of the

American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". T ...

of Maine

Declined

Emily Cain Emily Ann Cain (born March 29, 1980) is an American politician from Maine and Executive Director of EMILY's List. A member of the Democratic Party, Cain served in the Maine Senate from 2012 to 2014, representing the 30th district which includes p ...

, state senator ( ran for ME-02) *

, U.S. Representative ( ran for Governor)

Results

Independents

To qualify as an independent candidate for the U.S. Senate in Maine, a candidate 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 Eastern Maine Community College (EMCC) is a public community college in Bangor, Maine. It offers over 30 one- and two-year degree programs. The college offers technical, liberal arts, and career programs at the undergraduate level. History Eas ...

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

(Republican), incumbent U.S. Senator * Shenna Bellows (Democratic), former executive director of the Maine ACLU

Endorsements

Predictions

Polling

* * Internal poll for Shenna Bellows campaign ;With Collins ;With Poliquin ;With Summers

Results

The election was not close, with Collins winning all 16 of Maine's counties, each by a margin of at least 24 percentage points.

References

External links

U.S. Senate elections in Maine, 2014
at Ballotpedia
Campaign contributions
at

OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks data on campaign finance and lobbying. It was created from a merger of the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) and the National Institute on Money in Politics (NIMP) ...

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2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

Write-in candidates

Declined

Campaign

Polling

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

Declined

Results

Independents

Candidates

Declared

Declined

General election

Background

Candidates

Endorsements

Predictions

Polling

Results

See also

References

External links