Maine’s two senators will attend President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration Monday, while the state’s two Democratic members of the House of Representatives did not reveal their plans.
Trump, who is returning to the White House a second time after beating Vice President Kamala Harris in November and overcoming various criminal cases, is scheduled to take the oath of office at 12 p.m. Monday during an inauguration ceremony that was moved to the Capitol rotunda due to frigid forecasted temperatures.
He will then give a speech he has said will be unifying and uplifting, which would represent a break from his 2017 address featuring his “American carnage” remarks. Four years later, Trump will speak in the same place where a mob of his supporters breached the Capitol and attacked police officers while Congress sought to certify outgoing President Joe Biden’s 2020 victory.
U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, the lone Republican in Maine’s delegation, will continue her practice of attending every presidential inauguration, and U.S. Sen. Angus King, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, is planning to attend, according to their offices.
Spokespeople for U.S. Reps. Jared Golden, a Democrat who has aligned himself with Trump on issues such as tariffs, and Chellie Pingree, a progressive who did not attend Trump’s 2017 inauguration, did not respond to requests for comment Friday.
Ahead of Monday, Trump has said he may immediately carry out his “day one” vows on various issues affecting Maine, ranging from offshore wind to tariffs, deportations, and Jan. 6 pardons.
The offices of all four members have been distributing inauguration tickets to constituents who request them. Collins’ office said earlier this month it had no more available after getting roughly 3,500 requests for 400 tickets, although a spokesperson said other Maine offices pooled leftover tickets with the Republican senator to allow more people to attend.
