At Auburn Mall event, Speaker Johnson says CD2 one of the top five races in the nation

Speaking at an event in the Auburn Mall on Wednesday, U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson told a packed storefront that they were standing in the best use of an old shoe store he’d ever seen. 

Shoe store no longer, the space will now serve as headquarters for the volunteers working on Republican campaigns, such as Maine 2nd Congressional District candidate Austin Theriault and others who will appear on the November ballot. It is the 37th so-called “battle station” that the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has opened across the country. 

The NRCC is a political committee seeking to grow the number of Republicans in the U.S. House. Currently, Republicans hold a slight 220 to 212 majority over Democrats. 

“The investments from Speaker Johnson and the National Republican Congressional Committee prove that the pathway to growing the Republican majority in the House runs through Maine’s 2nd District,” said Maine Sen. Jeff Timberlake (R-Androscoggin), who spoke at the opening event Wednesday evening. 

Although Theriault said that it can sometimes feel like Maine gets overlooked in the national political landscape, that wasn’t the case Wednesday with Johnson in Auburn to rally support for Theriault and other Republican candidates. 

Johnson said that he believes Theriault’s race against incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Golden is one of the top five contests in the country. 

“Everybody is cheering for Maine,” Johnson said.

Johnson said he’s been talking about Theriault as he’s crisscrossed the country campaigning for other Republican candidates. “I’m talking about Maine everywhere I go,” he said.

Of the more than 30 states and almost 150 cities he’s visited so far, Johnson said the approximately 400 people who showed up in Auburn was the largest crowd he’s seen yet at one of these events. 

A number of Republican Maine lawmakers were present, including Assistant Senate Minority Leader Lisa Keim of Oxford, Assistant House Minority Leader Amy Arata of New Gloucester, Rep. Dick Bradstreet of Vassalboro and Rep. Michael Lemelin of Chelsea.

The battle station will be a hub for volunteers like Auburn residents Bruce and Louise Geoffroy who plan to use the space to stuff envelopes and coordinate plans for door knocking. The Geoffroys said they are campaigning for Republican candidates because “we need to take our country back.” The conservative husband and wife duo listed abortion, immigration and the economy as their top issues for this election. 

Johnson said that November’s election is not just a contest between Republicans and Democrats; it’s about two different visions for the nation. As Johnson described it, Republicans want to hold steadfast to the country’s founding principles and fight to keep America as the greatest country in the world, but Democrats want a “European-style socialist, Marxist utopia.”

Though he believes Republicans can win the White House and both chambers of Congress, Johnson said, “If we don’t fight for this right now, we’re going to lose it.”

A look at the CD2 race so far

Theriault’s campaign has received significant support from national Republican leaders.

Between the primary and general election, the Fort Kent native received more than $116,000 from Grow the Majority, the fundraising committee Johnson created to support Republicans running for U.S. House seats. 

Theriault was also endorsed by former President Donald Trump via a Truth Social post in late March. 

A freshman state legislator, Theriault is challenging Golden, who is running for a fourth term. Throughout the campaign, Theriault has claimed Golden is trying to hide from voters and the press and called the congressman a “flip flopper,” saying that he has gone back and forth in regards to his stances on border security and guns, among other issues. 

The two candidates have said they are willing to debate, but have yet to announce any details on when or where. Before the Republican primary in June, Theriault participated in multiple debates with his opponent, state Rep. Mike Soboleski (R-Phillips), during which he said border security was his top priority. 

Theriault wasn’t available for questions from reporters during the event Wednesday, but his campaign team confirmed that there still aren’t any scheduled debates between him and Golden. 

Calling for unity for Republican candidates, Soboleski released his first statement of support for Theriault in a news release Wednesday morning. He said he is giving Theriault his “complete and total support” because Republicans need to be focused on electing Trump and creating a majority in Congress. 

As for Wednesday’s events, Golden said Theriault was “hand-picked by GOP insiders like Mike Johnson because they know he’ll rubber stamp their harmful, extreme agenda.” 

Golden went on to list specific policies that may include, such as opposing lower prescription drug costs for seniors, cutting taxes for the wealthy, ending protections for pre-existing health conditions, banning abortion and choosing “politics over solutions with the border crisis.”

“Now, he’s kissed the ring,” Golden said of Theriault.

Theriault is also part of the “Young Guns” mentoring program facilitated by the NRCC that provides candidates with tools to run their campaign and sets specific goals for fundraising and communicating with their district. 

Emma Davis contributed to this story.