Fridays with Fossel
The weekly update for Friday, November 14, 2025
Welcome to this week’s recap, everyone - for Friday, November 14, 2025.1
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🗳 Maine News & Politics🗳
It’s been a busy week, yet again. Since Jared Golden decided not to run for re-election, other Democrats are considering - or have already jumped in to - the race. Former Congressional staffer Jordan Wood, who was running for the US Senate, decided to pivot to District 2 instead. Wood was struggling to find oxygen in the Senate race after Graham Platner became the progressive darling, so it makes sense, but…it’s hard to believe that a progressive will prevail in either the primary or the general election in the Second District. Wood does have a ton of money, though, and he can directly transfer it to a Congressional run, so it’s easy for him to make the change.
Angus King III, the son of the US Senator who is running for governor, won’t criticize the deal his father cut with Republicans to end the shutdown, unlike other Democrats. Lest you think that makes too much sense, in neighboring New Hampshire, Stefany Shaheen, a congressional candidate and the daughter of U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, criticized the deal her mother voted for. Angus King has faced plenty of heat from progressives for cutting the deal, but attempted to justify his decision in the Press Herald.
In other candidate-switching news, Sanford police chief Eric Smalls, who was running for Congress, decided to withdraw from that race and instead run for the Maine House. That will, no doubt, be an easier race with the incumbent Republican, Ann Fredericks, opting against running for re-election. It leaves the Maine GOP with a gaping hole in the First District, though: At present, the only Republican candidate is Ron Russell, who lost handily in 2024.
Two-term Democratic State Senator Joe Rafferty, of Kennebunk, has announced that he won’t run for re-election next year. While surprising, clearly this was in the works: he immediately endorsed state Rep. Dan Sayre, D-Kennebunk, who has served on the state’s AI task force. This one has the potential to be competitive if Republicans find a decent candidate: While Rafferty won by double digits in both 2024 and 2022, he was a popular local football coach and his margin dropped last cycle.
There have been a few polls released on the upcoming U.S. Senate race between incumbent Susan Collins and either Governor Janet Mills or Graham Platner, but they were conflicting and didn’t release all the details. One showed Platner would lose to Collins, but didn’t release number for Mills; the other showed Platner beating both Mills and Collins. Both polls are linked to progressive advocacy groups with ties to the Mills and Platner campaigns, so it’s worth taking them with a grain of salt (or a pound), but they show the general election close. One showed Platner beating Collins by less than five points and Mills losing to Collins by less than five; the other showed Platner losing to Collins by nine points. We’ll have to wait for real polls to see how the race might be shaping up.
🏀 Sports 🏀
🍺 What I’m drinking 🍺
Tubular (7.2%), by Orono Brewing Company, is a nice, slightly bitter, fruity hazy New England IPA. It’s widely available across the state in restaurants, bars, and stores alike, as Orono’s flagship IPA. It’s a great go-to option for any occasion, with a nice balance between juicy, tropical, and dry.
🎵What I’m listening to 🎵
Jim is also a weekly columnist for the Portland Press Herald, Maine’s largest daily newspaper. Follow him on X, BlueSky, and on Facebook.
This was written Thursday evening and scheduled for publication Friday morning.