The first debate between U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, and state Rep. Austin Theriault, R-Fort Kent, on Thursday offers key chances for the incumbent to seize momentum and for the challenger to introduce himself to a broader segment of undecided voters in the 2nd District.
The Bangor Daily News and CBS 13 are hosting Thursday evening’s debate as the first of three forums this month between Golden and Theriault ahead of the Nov. 5 election, with the other televised debates next week.
What’s at stake: Time is running out for Golden, a Marine veteran who first won election to Congress in 2018, and Theriault, a former NASCAR driver who has served one term in Augusta, to win over undecideds. Military and overseas voters are already receiving ballots, and in-person absentee voting begins Monday throughout Maine.
The first and only public poll of the race was released last month and showed Theriault leading Golden by 47 percent to 44 percent, with 9 percent undecided in the Pan Atlantic Research survey of 800 voters that had a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points.
It also showed Golden’s net favorability rating had dropped 19 points since the survey firm’s last round of polling in February. Golden had opened his 2020 and 2022 races with solid leads on his Republican challengers.
Those concerning trends for Golden were not entirely surprising given he has irked both his own supporters on the Democratic side and Republicans for frequently bucking his party and falling near the middle when it comes to his voting record. Golden has also not said whether he will vote for Vice President Kamala Harris, while saying he won’t back ex-President Donald Trump.
Still, Golden, 42, has proven a durable Democrat in the sprawling, rural 2nd District that backed Trump in 2016 and 2020. The powerful U.S. Chamber of Commerce also endorsed Golden on Wednesday. Theriault, 30, has the support of Trump and national Republicans who view the 2nd District race as one of the most important in the country this year, but those who do not closely follow State House or NASCAR developments may not know him as well.
What are the issues: Golden and Theriault have plenty of differences but also have more in common than many Democrats and Republicans do in other races across the country.
That has led to them nitpicking each other over more minute aspects of their records. Theriault has not faced Golden on a stage and only has debated state Rep. Mike Soboleski, R-Phillips, before the GOP primary he comfortably won in June.
The economy, guns, immigration and support for Maine’s lobster industry are among numerous issues that have already arisen during the race. The challenge for Theriault and Republicans — and a key defense for Golden — is Golden has voted with House Republicans and against the majority of Democrats on various bills related to these topics, though the proposals are sometimes part of “show votes” geared more toward election year posturing than serious action.
While Theriault may continue his oft-repeated line of calling Golden a “flip-flopper” for changing his stances on certain issues while vowing to vote against plans by any party to cut Social Security, Golden may push back by noting Theriault is backed by Republicans outside of Maine who have put forward controversial measures and abortion restrictions.
