Politics
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Gov. Janet Mills has repeatedly clashed with legislative Democrats on tribal rights. The party’s 2026 gubernatorial candidates are also breaking with her on the issue.
The split on the sensitive topic shows clear differences between the 77-year-old Mills and younger crop of politicians looking to replace her. That field includes her former policy chief and the son of U.S. Angus King, an independent who caucuses with Democrats and a former governor who has shared the skepticism of sweeping concessions to tribes.
At the heart of the disagreements between the four federally recognized tribes and Mills is a repeated effort to let tribes benefit from federal laws that do not currently apply to them under the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act, a landmark 1980 settlement that gave tribes in Maine about $81.5 million in exchange for regulating them essentially like cities and towns.
Mills has previously vetoed the sovereignty effort that drew bipartisan support, and the Legislature has failed to override the governor’s moves due to Republican legislators largely siding with Mills. She argued the proposed changes could lead to legal issues, with the governor’s office saying she has been willing to instead work with the Wabanaki tribes on a narrower, case-by-case basis to change laws.
The 2026 gubernatorial field has mostly solidified around four contenders. The only one to not explicitly promise to swiftly propose sovereignty legislation was Angus King III, a former clean energy executive and son of Maine’s junior senator. King said Monday that trust between the tribes and state has “continued to erode” and that he would bring “all voices to the table.”
“Our past efforts have not worked and we need to do things a different way,” King said in a statement. “We’ve got to get the legislation right with new and trusted voices focused on honoring and respecting the rights of the Wabanaki Nations and the surrounding communities.”
Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said Monday she will “work with the chiefs to draft legislation that they would be happy with” and release it on the first day of her administration. Former Senate President Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, similarly promised when he launched his campaign in May to submit a bill to “restore tribal sovereignty to the Wabanaki” on his first day.
Former Maine House Speaker Hannah Pingree, who led Mills’ policy office until May and who is the daughter of U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, made that commitment at her June campaign launch and reiterated Monday she would back “full tribal sovereignty.”
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State Sen. Rick Bennett of Oxford, who left the Republican Party to run for governor as an independent, also backs tribal sovereignty. The Republican gubernatorial field that could still expand will also face questions on the subject. While House Minority Leader Billy Bob Faulkingham, R-Winter Harbor, has been aligned with tribes, the rank and file have agreed more with Mills.
Mills has not ruled out a run against U.S. Sen. Susan Collins in 2026. She testified in 2022 against a tribal sovereignty proposal from U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat from the 2nd District, that stalled in Congress. Collins took no position on that bill and later avoided questions about the State House fight between Mills and tribes in 2023.
Jordan Wood, a Bristol resident who previously worked for progressive groups and U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, D-California, on Capitol Hill, said earlier in August it “is time the federal government treated Maine’s tribes the same as it does for every other tribe in the continental United States.”
Graham Platner, a Sullivan oysterman and Marine veteran who launched his Senate campaign last week, said the Wabanaki Nations “are entitled to true sovereignty and self-determination.”