By Michael Shepherd - Oct. 17, 2023
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Republicans trying to oust Maine's congressman have catching up to do. U.S. Rep. Jared Golden has won three terms in Maine's conservative-leaning 2nd District. It doesn't mean the Democrat is unbeatable, but the three Republicans vying for the opportunity to oust him in next year's election have low profiles and an awful lot to prove.

That was underscored by the big fundraising figure posted by Golden and the subpar ones from two of those Republicans. The incumbent raised $1.4 million through Sept. 30, while challengers Robert Cross of Dedham and state Rep. Michael Soboleski of Phillips brought in $58,000 and $13,000, respectively. Updated filings through the end of last month were due over the weekend.

The only candidate missing was the most interesting one on this front, state Rep. Austin Theriault of Fort Kent, who did not report because he rolled out his campaign near the end of last month. But he said less than a week in that he had raised $100,000 from Mainers alone and he is backed by House Republicans' campaign arm. He should have a good mix of Maine and national money to work with by the time we can look at his finances in mid-January.

Soboleski has run an active campaign so far, and it's worth noting that his run was only active for about nine days before the filing deadline. However, candidates typically line up big pledges before they roll out their campaigns. This number is small when you consider that opening day is typically one of the strongest ones for any campaign.

The candidates need to introduce themselves before they dream of ousting Golden. The lawmakers are freshmen and are not well-known except in their isolated districts. Theriault has repute and national connections for his career as a NASCAR driver, while Cross comes from a notable Bangor-area business family and is drawing on that community for money early on.

For now, Golden's operation is on another level. For example, he has gotten $82,000 in contributions bundled by the bipartisan and influential American Israel Public Affairs Committee, as well as $215,000 from political committees including labor unions and centrist groups.

When Golden started running for Congress in 2018, his operation was also dwarfed from the outset by that of Rep. Bruce Poliquin, a Republican. But he was still raising money at a healthy clip for a primary against Lucas St. Clair, a wealthy darling of the environmental community here. Perhaps absent Theriault, his challengers have not ramped up as quickly.

There is still time for everybody. Former Gov. Paul LePage's insurgent win in the 2010 primary showed us that money doesn't always win these races. These numbers show us that Golden is going to be awfully hard to beat, but that Theriault might have the edge on his Republican colleagues.