Two contested races for Maine’s constitutional officers to be decided this week

Maine has two contested races for constitutional officers that the state Legislature will settle this week. 

Attorney General Aaron Frey is facing a challenge from Maeghan Maloney, the district attorney for Kennebec and Somerset counties who previously ran for the role in 2018 when the Legislature selected Frey to replace now-Gov. Janet Mills.

State Treasurer Henry Beck is not seeking another term and two legislators are vying for the position, the previous House Majority Leader Mo Terry of Gorham and state Rep. Joe Perry of Bangor.

Secretary of State Shenna Bellows is running for reelection and is expected to win, as no one has publicly challenged her.

All are Democrats, as the majority party of the Legislature gets to select constitutional officers.

Democratic lawmakers will meet Tuesday to settle on their nominees ahead of formal votes held on Wednesday, when lawmakers are sworn in for the 132 session. 

Maine is an outlier with its insular selection process for constitutional officers. Rather than giving that power to state legislators, most states popularly elect their treasurer, secretary of state and attorney general. 

For decades Maine lawmakers have proposed changing the selection process, such as instead allowing the public to decide through a direct popular election. However, such attempts have failed. 

Attorney General 

Frey told Maine Morning Star he is running on a platform of experience having served in the position for the past six years, including during part of the last Donald Trump presidency. 

“I think one of the strongest assets that I bring to the table in terms of how the Attorney General is going to be called upon to act over the next two years is the experience that I bring, in not only my work over the last six years but the preparations I have made with my team to take on what could be a very challenging presidential administration,” Frey said. 

Frey is already preparing for another Trump presidency “even before day one,” he said, and pointed to his track record of insulating Maine from out-of-state interference, such as challenges to legal reproductive and gender-affirming healthcare. 

Maine also has ongoing litigation that Frey thinks would benefit from having continuity of representation. For example, Frey has sued Amazon over anti-competitive practices, Meta for allegedly violating federal law in how it markets to children, and PFAS manufacturers and fossil fuel companies for alleged deceit. Maine is also beginning to receive money from opioid settlements Frey helped spearhead. 

“There is value in having somebody engaged in this, at the table, who’s been there from the beginning,” Frey said. 

Both Frey and Maloney have promised to fight against possible challenges to Maine law by the Trump administration if selected. Maloney did not respond to Maine Morning Star’s interview request but told the Portland Press Herald that she is challenging Frey to offer Maine an attorney general who can serve throughout Trump’s upcoming four-year term. 

The Maine Legislature selects the state’s constitutional officers every two years, the length of the legislative session, and Frey will be termed out in two years.

“At least it would be possible for me to serve for the entire Trump administration,” Maloney told the Press Herald. “There will be a lot that will be happening two years from now. There will be cases that have not yet started that will be mid-process in two years, and those cases would benefit from having a consistent leadership.”

Frey pushed back on that argument during his interview with Maine Morning Star.

“I think that my experience, it’s a thing you’d want to take advantage of over the next two years,” Frey said. “You don’t want to leave that on the sideline.”

As a political actor, Frey said he hopes the Legislature will continue to be Democratically-led two years from now and have the opportunity to elect another Democratic attorney general. However, nothing is guaranteed. 

While Maine sent Democratic majorities back to both the House of Representatives and Senate on Nov. 5, the chambers have slimmer majorities than last session. 

Both Frey and Maloney would also bring experience with Maine law beyond their work as attorneys to the role, as both previously served in the Maine Legislature.

State Treasurer 

Beck confirmed he is not seeking reelection as state treasurer, after serving in the role since 2018. Beck also previously served in the Maine House. 

Terry, who termed out of the Maine House after four consecutive terms, said Beck reached out to her when he decided not to run again to suggest she vie for the role. 

“It definitely feels it’s the right fit for me,” Terry told Maine Morning Star. “It’s pretty evident that the work that I’ve done really supports the role itself.” 

That work, she said, includes serving as majority leader of the Maine House, chairing the Legislature’s Taxation Committee and being a part of financial planning for national groups such as the National Conference of State Legislatures and the State Legislative Leaders Foundation. 

However, Terry added that, if selected, she’d also pull from her experience outside the Legislature. As a former chef and now small business owner, she said success also depends on one’s ability to understand and meet the needs of staff. 

“I’m 100% comfortable with being a public face but at the same time I know that the work is done in the office and making sure that that office has all the things that they need is incredibly important,” Terry said. “It was in my first kitchen. It was in the House Democratic office and I’m 100% positive it will be the same way in the Treasury’s office.” 

Terry initially had an uncontested path to become state treasurer, before Perry, who recently won reelection for his fourth House term, entered the race at the encouragement of his fellow lawmakers, as initially reported by the Bangor Daily News. Perry did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication. 

Perry told the BDN other lawmakers indicated Republicans would back him for treasurer, potentially giving the minority party some power in the election of the partisan constitutional officer. Before serving in the House, Perry served three terms in the Senate. He also owns a convenience store in Bangor. 

While Terry had not expected Perry to run, she said, “Really, honestly, I think Joe would also do a great job.” However, as the outgoing majority leader, she said she hopes he remains for his next term as a legislator and that a special election isn’t needed.

Democrats are expected to settle on their nominee Tuesday, before the full Legislature convenes Wednesday to formally vote. According to the BDN, Perry signaled that he is opposed to running against his own party if he’s not selected as nominee.