AUGUSTA, Maine — Former President Donald Trump figures prominently in the closing arguments made ahead of Maine’s 2nd District primary between two Republican state lawmakers vying to take on U.S. Rep. Jared Golden in November.
The final blitz of campaign flyers in the mail and interviews on conservative talk radio come as Republican voters on Tuesday will pick either Mike Soboleski or Austin Theriault to face Golden, who has been a durable Democrat since 2018 in a district that twice went for Trump.
Austin Theriault, a 30-year-old former NASCAR driver from Fort Kent, is continuing to frequently mention his endorsement from Trump, the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes who is running against President Joe Biden in November.
One Theriault mailer features Trump’s photo and quotes his Truth Social post from March that said Theriault “will work hard to Secure the Border.”
“Donald Trump needs Austin Theriault in Congress,” one mailer reads.
Mike Soboleski, a 67-year-old Marine veteran from Phillips whose varied career has ranged from being a small business owner to an actor, is trying to counter his lack of a Trump endorsement by pointing to dozens of current and former state lawmakers backing him and honing in on differences between his and Theriault’s voting records in Augusta.
The top of a Soboleski mailer says, “There’s Only One REAL Conservative Running for Maine CD2 Congress.” It then lists 20 differences between Soboleski and Theriault, ranging from their votes on bills — such as Theriault supporting and Soboleski opposing legislation authorizing a northern Maine transmission line — to Soboleski being a volunteer first responder in New York City after the attacks of September 11, 2001. (Theriault was 7 years old then.)
Soboleski does not mention Trump’s endorsement of Theriault, although Soboleski had touted supporting Trump for decades earlier in the campaign and formally weighed in to oppose Secretary of State Shenna Bellows’ decision that was eventually overturned to kick Trump off Maine’s primary ballot.
Each candidate also called into Matt Gagnon’s WGAN morning news show Wednesday, with Theriault blasting a “sham trial” that ended last week with a New York jury finding Trump guilty of 34 felony counts in a hush money-related case. Theriault said he would support the “America first” agenda along with small businesses in the 2nd District.
Soboleski said he is the only veteran who could face a fellow Marine veteran in Golden. He alluded to Theriault’s vast fundraising advantage and mentioned rumors that national Republicans will not spend cash to support him if he wins the primary by saying he is not accepting any “swamp money” or “PAC money.”
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Theriault touched on improving border security and helping Trump reinstate his “Remain in Mexico” policy, something Golden also supports. Soboleski said he wants term and lobbying limits — additional policies Golden supports — while mentioning four bills he would introduce tied to supporting veterans, reinstating Trump’s “Operation Legend” violent crime initiative and maintaining or increasing funding for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
National Republicans are eyeing Golden’s seat as a key one to potentially win back in November to maintain a narrow edge over Democrats in the House. Election forecasters have rated the 2nd District general election contest a “toss up.”
