Senate swing vote Collins to announce Friday whether she'll run for governor of Maine
Source: CNN
Republican Sen. Susan Collins will announce Friday morning whether she will run for governor of Maine in 2018, a source with knowledge of the senator's plans told CNN.
Collins, among the most moderate GOP senators, has been a thorn in President Donald Trump's side -- particularly on health care, where she consistently voted against the GOP's efforts to roll back former President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act.
But were she elected, her departure from the Senate would be a sharp blow to Republicans because without Collins, the seat would become much more difficult to keep out of Democratic hands in 2020.
Collins is spending the Columbus Day week-long recess making her decision.
Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/10/politics/susan-collins-maine-governor-decision-friday/index.html
Tiggeroshii
(11,088 posts)Get a governor there who isn't batshit insane and give the democrats a 1 seat edge in the Senate. Definitely worth it especially considering the Democrats are in no way at risk of losing the legislature.
On edit: wait how is her replacement decided/appointed in Maine?
Pacifist Patriot
(24,654 posts)Here's a link I keep handy for cases like this. I'm always having to check back with it.
http://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/vacancies-in-the-united-states-senate.aspx
tinrobot
(10,927 posts)Pacifist Patriot
(24,654 posts)Salviati
(6,009 posts)At that point a special election is held to fill the rest of the term.
Just looked it up. Decided by ththe next statewide election who finishes remainder of the term.
CaliforniaPeggy
(149,831 posts)OTOH! Anything that would hamper the Republican efforts to undo Obama's legacy would be WONDERFUL.
Tom Rinaldo
(22,919 posts)Collins may run to replace him in 2018. Her Senate term expires in 2020. Would she or LePage get to make a temporary appointment if Collins wins the 2018 election? Would she have to resign her Senate seat before being sworn in as Governor? Would that give LePage time to temporarily appoint a right wing Republican Senator before leaving office? It looks like a Senatorial appointment would last at least until the next regular state wide election, rather than there being a special election.
newblewtoo
(667 posts)to Angus King who must also stand for re-election to the Senate in 2018 ? She needs to stay lest Le Page appoints himself (or someone just as wacky) to fill her term.
YOHABLO
(7,358 posts)keithbvadu2
(37,051 posts)Susan Collins was a 'right time, right place' candidate.
She was in a three person race and so far back she could not even see the other two candidates' tail lights.
The millionaire candidate sponsored an investigation of the evangelist candidate who got run out of a southern state because he was boinking his twelve year old babysitter.
The millionaire denied his involvement but the public turned against both him and the evangelist, leaving Susan Collins as the sole remaining viable candidate.