Initial results from Maine’s November 2026 RCV elections
On Tuesday, Maine used ranked choice voting (RCV) in its U.S. Senate and 2nd Congressional District elections. Though only one Democrat and one Republican were on the ballot in each race, voters had the option to rank a write-in candidate too.
As of Wednesday morning, the U.S. Senate race has been called for Democrat Troy Jackson, and the 2nd Congressional District race is too close to call. Details on the preliminary results are below.
U.S. Senate
In the U.S. Senate race, Democrat Troy Jackson has been declared the winner with 54% of first choices counted so far. Incumbent Republican Susan Collins follows with 46%. Because Jackson has a majority of first choices, the race will not go to an RCV count.
| Candidate | First choices | First choice % |
|---|---|---|
| Troy Jackson (D) | 342,661 | 53.8% |
| Susan Collins (R) | 293,629 | 46.1% |
| Brent Andrews (declared write-in) | 202 | 0.03% |
| Ashley Webb (declared write-in) | 72 | 0.01% |
| Sigrid Ann Olson (declared write-in) | 43 | 0.01% |
| Gina Oswald (declared write-in) | 58 | 0.01% |
| Michael Turcotte (declared write-in) | 34 | 0.01% |
| Joseph Steinberger | 26 | 0.0% |
U.S. House
In the 2nd Congressional District, Democrat Matt Dunlap leads in first choices over Republican Paul LePage, 50.1% to 49.9%. Write-in candidate Gregory Ward is currently at 0.05%. With about 85% of votes counted, no major news outlet has called this race. However, the Bangor Daily News rates LePage as the favorite, as its model anticipates the outstanding towns will break heavily his way. According to BDN, the race is also unlikely to need an RCV tally. Because the write-in candidate received a very small share of the vote, it is likely that either LePage or Dunlap will finish with a majority of first choices.
| Candidate | First choices | First choice % |
|---|---|---|
| Matthew Dunlap (D) | 148.454 | 50.1% |
| Paul LePage (R) | 147,747 | 49.9% |
| Gregory Ward (declared write-in) | 158 | 0.05% |
Maine’s experience with ranked choice voting
Maine has used RCV for state and federal primaries, and federal general elections, since 2018. RCV has allowed more voters to vote for their favorite candidates without “wasting their vote.” Voters can rank third-party, independent, and/or write-in candidates, and still weigh in between the Democrat and Republican.
Democrats, Republicans, and independents have all been elected in Maine under RCV – including Republican Susan Collins in the past, independent U.S. Senator Angus King, and Democratic Representatives Jared Golden and Chellie Pingree. In a 2024 poll, 82% of Mainers said RCV is easy, and 57% liked having the ability to rank candidates. Maine saw record turnout in its highly contested 2026 RCV primaries, and this election’s turnout is also likely to handily beat turnout in Maine’s last statewide midterm race (which did not use RCV).
To learn more about RCV in the Pine Tree State, visit Democracy Maine.
