Who is Bobby Charles and what is Charles running on in the 2026 Maine Governor race?

Bobby Charles is the Republican candidate for Maine governor. Attorney from Leeds and former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State (2003-2005); won the ranked-choice GOP primary after seven rounds. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026.

The race

• The seat: Open seat (Janet Mills term-limited).
• Rating: Likely D / Lean D (Cook, Inside Elections, RCP per Wikipedia, 2026).
• Polling: Pingree 50 to 55, Charles 36 to 40, Bennett 8 (NYT/Portland Press Herald/Siena, June 19 to 26, 2026).

Why Charles is behind

• Maine leans Democratic and has voted Democratic for president in every election since 1992.
• Pingree led by double digits in the only public general-election poll (Siena, June).
• Independent Rick Bennett, a former GOP Senate president, splits the non-Democratic vote.
• Charles’s plan to scrap the income tax and cut $4B is ambitious; even a GOP primary rival questioned whether it is feasible.

What Charles is running on

• Taxes/budget. Would phase out the state income tax over one term and cut $4B from the budget.
• Housing. Wants deregulation and lower income and property taxes to spur building.
• Energy. Wants to cut energy costs by 40%, sees a future for wood and biomass, and opposes renewable subsidies.
• Welfare. Supports work requirements for MaineCare (Medicaid).
• Immigration. Would cut state funding for housing for immigrants not legally present.

In Charles’s own words

“I believe that wood and biomass have an extraordinary future in this state.”

“I’m a constitutionalist. There’s no going back in history. Joe Biden.”

The other candidates

• Hannah Pingree (D)
• Rick Bennett (I)

Every race

See every Senate and governor race on the ballot, with each candidate’s chance of winning: the 2026 midterms at a glance.