ICYMI: “Since voters sent Trump back to the White House, Bellows has kept getting in his way.” [Portland Press Herald]
In case you missed it, new reporting from the Portland Press-Herald is highlighting how Shenna Bellows has been standing up to Trump, and winning over voters, as the campaign for governor heats up in Maine.
Read More:
Portland Press Herald: Can Shenna Bellows’ stand against Trump translate to a successful run for governor?
By Rachel Ohm
April 13, 2026
"She has an energy that's just spectacular," resident Lynn Lockwood said after the event. "She's really smart, and she has the passion you want to see in a candidate."
Unlike many of the other Democratic candidates, Bellows has become a villain to Maine conservatives for her brash anti-Trump moves.
Bellows said she brings a unique set of qualifications with her working class background, legislative service and time as an executive and manager. She says voters are sick of politicians who don't say what they mean — and, according to her, she's not that. "I hear this all the time: I don't always agree with you, but I trust you are saying what you mean, and that you'll fight for us," she said.
Since voters sent Trump back to the White House, Bellows has kept getting in his way. When the Trump administration requested voter registration data from Maine, Bellows refused to provide it. She says the feds having this data would jeopardize privacy and put voter information at risk. Trump sued her over her refusal. At a press conference on the matter last summer, she told his administration to "go jump in the Gulf of Maine" — a phrase she has continued to echo.
"She's really well-grounded around decision making," Smith [former head of Equality Maine] said. "I think she would be a fantastic governor because she has the collaborative and political experience and the instincts to be the kind of leader that's going to consider all points of view."
Her district also voted for Trump, a Republican, for president that year — something Bellows has touted on the campaign trail as an example of her appeal to the rural working class. She said her focus on the issues that matter to people — health care, the cost of living and education — earned her broad support and got her reelected in 2018 and 2020.
At The Highlands, voters said they were impressed with Bellows' energy and enthusiasm. She talked passionately about standing up for democracy and fighting for the things she believes in, and she engaged the crowd with her personal anecdotes
