Former Gov. Paul LePage on Monday announced he will appear in two October debates against State Auditor Matt Dunlap, who has been pressing instead for four debates before Election Day in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District.
The announcement came after Dunlap had accused LePage of ducking debates and forums while not holding town halls. The former governor was the last notable Maine politician to commit to 2026 debates after Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Troy Jackson agreed to four against Republican Sen. Susan Collins.
LePage’s team said it had been evaluating invitations since touching base with news organizations with a memo outlining their process earlier this summer. The former governor agreed to two: a WMTW debate on Oct. 1 and a forum hosted by WABI and WAGM on Oct. 15.
LePage in a statement said he “[looks] forward to these forums,” arguing he has a track record of lowering costs, cutting taxes and protecting Social Security “while politicians tend to make promises they do not keep.”
The pair of events afford everyone who lives in the 2nd District an opportunity to hear the governor on the issues, Brent Littlefield, a longtime LePage adviser, said. Asked if LePage was considering any other debates, Littlefield said the announcement was straightforward and that the campaign stuck to a process “which goes all the way back to early June.”
Recent polls have shown a tight race, but observers have seen LePage as a favorite in the conservative-leaning district, which is being vacated by moderate Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Golden. Republican groups, including President Donald Trump’s political operation and Elon Musk’s PAC, which is also backing Collins, have targeted the race as the GOP looks to hold onto its slim House majority in a tough national environment.
Dunlap’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on LePage’s announcement Monday. Last week, Dunlap said he’d challenged the former governor to four debates across the state and noted LePage at the time hadn’t confirmed any.
“Zero town halls, dodged questions on Iran, skipped candidate forums,” he said. “If you can’t answer tough questions, you have no business running for Congress.”