This article was originally published by Maine Morning Star on May 20, 2026. It is republished here under a CC BY-ND 4.0 license. Any views expressed are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect those of Independent Political Report or the Outsider Media Foundation. Links are included as they are in the original article. Title amended for clarity. Header image added by Independent Political Report.
Independent gubernatorial candidate Rick Bennett submitted more than 5,000 signatures to the Maine Secretary of State’s Office Wednesday in his bid to appear on the November ballot alongside Republican and Democratic party nominees.
The campaign later said the Secretary of State verified 4,517 of the signatures, more than the 4,000 required for ballot access. Signatures for non-party candidates are due to the office by the close of business on June 1.
“The people want a governor who’s beholden only to them and who is focused relentlessly on getting things done for the people of Maine,” Bennett said during a press conference in Augusta.
An outgoing state senator representing Oxford County, Bennett previously chaired the Maine GOP and left the party last year to announce his independent run. He said Mainers are tired of “politics as usual.”
“They’re really tired of the partisanship, the finger pointing, and they’re really looking for problem solving,” Bennett said.
There are a dozen candidates vying to replace outgoing Democratic Gov. Janet Mills in the Democratic and Republican primaries on June 9. While the primaries will utilize ranked-choice voting, the general election in November will not. The presence of at least one strong independent candidate on the ballot could dramatically impact the election outcome.
U.S. Sen. Angus King, also an independent, served two terms as Maine governor before being elected to Congress. In 2010, former Republican Gov. Paul LePage won with only 38% of the vote in a four-way race, in which less conservative voters split between independent Eliot Cutler, who garnered nearly 36%, and Democrat Libby Mitchell.
In his campaign, Bennett has emphasized his history of working with both parties, and said his focus is on helping the people of Maine.
“I don’t care what color the state may be painted, we’re interested in getting results that work for people,” Bennett said.
He said affordability is a top priority for him, as people struggle to pay for gas, housing, food and more.
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