Gov. Paul LePage, R-Maine, will not run for the Senate seat of Angus King, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats, in the 2018 election. An adviser reveald this in a statement released Wednesday evening.
“Governor Paul LePage has helped the State of Maine achieve the largest number of private sector jobs in history, implement the largest tax cut in state history, and implement reforms which have resulted in Maine showing a significant revenue surplus earlier this year and, while these accomplishments are great, there is more to do. Therefore the Governor will remain focused on the job at hand and not enter the United States Senate race in 2018,” Brent Littlefield said in a statement.
The two-term governor had been rumored to be considering a run for the seat held by King, a former Maine governor.
Littlefield said LePage wants to continue working in Augusta, where he has implemented the largest tax cut in the state’s history and reformed the pension system.
King, a former two-term governor of Maine, is in his first six-year term in the Senate.
Maine’s Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins said in April that she is seriously contemplating a run for governor in 2018.
