Maine Governor Janet Mills on Thursday morning announced she was abandoning her bid for the Democratic nomination to take on incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins in November's general election.
Her announcement was shocking – but ultimately unsurprising.
Mills has been a popular governor in the state and was the top choice of a national Democrat establishment targeting the Maine Senate seat as a lynchpin in its effort to wrest control of the chamber from Republicans in this year's midterm congressional elections.
But her campaign never gained momentum, and she had trailed political novice Graham Platner in primary-preference surveys for months – an early indication that this year, Democratic voters may be open to backing more non-traditional candidates.
"While I have the drive and passion, the commitment and experience, and above all else – the fight – to continue on," she wrote in a statement announcing her decision, "I very simply do not have the one thing that political campaigns unfortunately require today: the financial resources".
