As her U.S. Senate campaign faces questions about strategy and viability, Gov. Janet Mills used a town hall at Bowdoin College Tuesday to make the case that she’s still Democrats’ best chance to defeat Republican Sen. Susan Collins in November.
“I know there are liabilities on the part of my opponent that would make him a difficult candidate in the fall, let me put it that way,” she said. “I’ve never said things like all white, rural Americans, or Mainers, are racist and stupid. I’ve never said things like that.
Mills’ comment, which came at the tail end of the event hosted by Bowdoin College Democrats, was the one and only time that she referenced her primary rival Graham Platner. But Platner, who will speak at the same venue on Wednesday night, loomed large nevertheless.
Polls show that the combat veteran turned oyster farmer holds a significant lead over Mills despite a history of offensive social media posts and a tattoo of Nazi iconography that he’s since covered. The political newcomer has repeatedly addressed those controversies via social media, paid advertising and a dizzying schedule of public events — including more than 50 town halls so far.
Mills’ effort to highlight his musings in her own advertising have seemingly not boosted her standing. Last week her campaign did not book any television ads, which have included two criticizing him over his posts about sexual assault.
Those developments have prompted pundits to speculate whether Mills, a top recruit for Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer, will stay in the race. Mills didn’t face those questions directly on Tuesday, but she sought to frame her candidacy as a way to fight the existential threat posed by President Donald Trump and an obedient Republican Congress.
“The point is, I can win this race,” she said. “And I need to win this race.”
Still, questions surround Mills’ ability to rally with eight weeks left before the June 9 primary election, prompting scrutiny over a campaign that’s in stark contrast to the ubiquity of Platner’s. While the governor is maintaining a robust schedule of campaign events, many have been smaller, controlled gatherings. The Bowdoin College event was a departure from that approach, although the event was not promoted by her campaign beforehand. Maine Public, which discovered the town hall incidentally, appeared to be the only media outlet that covered it.
Mills spoke for about 20 minutes before fielding questions from an audience featuring a mix of college students and older residents. The governor spoke at length about her decision to challenge Collins, calling the Republican a Trump enabler whose influence as the Senate budget committee’s lead appropriator has been diminished by a White House that’s seizing control over congressional spending decisions.
Mills also talked up her electoral success, specifically the two statewide gubernatorial elections she’s won — and that made her a top Schumer recruit. While she did not mention Platner in that context, the inference was clear: She’s battle tested, he isn’t.
“I’ve done it. I know how to do it. I know how to get through it. They throw everything but the kitchen sink at you,” she said. “That’s happened to me. I don’t care. I’m too old to care, frankly.”
Mills spoke for about 20 minutes before fielding audience questions, many of which provided a clear contrast to Platner’s strident positions on foreign affairs. Students repeatedly questioned whether Mills would halt military aid to Israel over its prosecution of the conflict in Gaza.
Mills said she would have to evaluate the specifics of any bill that would halt arms shipments to Israel. While she criticized Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s military response to the 2023 terrorist attacks that ignited the conflict, she stopped short of calling it a genocide when pressed by an audience member.
“The things happening in Gaza are also horrific and unnecessary and cruel. I think bombing civilian facilities of any sort is a violation of international law,” she said, adding, “There’s genocide going on right now in Sudan. Rwanda has genocide. There’s genocide going on in Somalia. I’m concerned about those countries as well as the Middle East, OK? There’s a lot we have to be concerned about, a lot on our plate.”
Her response quickly made its way on social media, prompting a post from Platner.
“Unlike the governor, I believe that Israel is committing a genocide in Gaza,” he said.
The event was attended by roughly 200 people and came as the three Democrats vying to challenge Collins — Platner, Mills and David Costello — were set to post their latest campaign finance reports. Platner has maintained an edge in that category as well.
Collins, meanwhile, has had to spend little of her campaign cash as the Democrats duke it out.
This story appears through a media partnership with Maine Public.