A little more than a year ago, Democratic voters in Maine were cheering on Gov. Janet Mills after she talked back to President Trump in a meeting at the White House. But on Thursday, when Ms. Mills abruptly announced that she was dropping out of the state’s U.S. Senate race, fans of the governor were hard to find.
Voters who had watched Ms. Mills, 78, struggle to gain traction in the Democratic primary said they were largely unsurprised — and, in many cases, relieved — to see her exit. The group included progressives backing her younger, more left-leaning primary opponent, Graham Platner, 41, and conservatives who support Senator Susan Collins, the longtime Republican incumbent.
“It’s time for the next generation to come in and take over,” said Jim Gerritsen, 71, a potato farmer in Bridgewater, Maine, near the Canadian border.
Ms. Mills’s withdrawal left Mr. Platner, an Iraq War veteran and oyster farmer, as the presumptive Democratic nominee, and quickly shifted the focus from the June primary to the battle to beat Ms. Collins in November.
Voters on both sides said it was tricky to predict the outcome, given Mr. Platner’s unexpected and rapid ascent. He has survived a few scandals, but that left some voters worried that others might be revealed. At the same time, even many longtime supporters of Ms. Collins, 73, have expressed unease with her age and lengthy tenure.
“It’s going to be a tight race,” said Barney Rich, 68, as he worked behind the counter at Mike’s Fish Market and Lobster Pound in Wells, Maine, where the sign in the front window advertises “Hot Chowder” and Coors Light. “Voter turnout will decide it.”
Mr. Rich plans to vote for Ms. Collins, but wishes he had more options. “I don’t think anyone should serve more than two terms,” he said. “I’d like to see someone new, someone younger.”
His fish market co-worker, Nicholas Staples, 29, said he was undecided, but pleased to see Ms. Mills bow out. “Anyone but her,” he said. “Most of the state is not a fan, from what I’ve seen.”
Ms. Mills, who rose from district attorney to attorney general to governor, the first woman in Maine to serve in those roles, grew up in conservative Franklin County and has been politically moderate on some issues, most notably gun rights. That positioning helped her succeed in a divided state, while sometimes disappointing liberal and progressive voters.
Recent polls showed Ms. Mills trailing well behind Mr. Platner. In her announcement on Thursday, she said the decision came down to a shortage of campaign funds, “the one thing that political campaigns unfortunately require today.”
Across the state, where voters lean more conservative in the rural north and more liberal in the populous south, people interviewed in a chilly spring rain on Thursday shared a variety of concerns about Ms. Mills’s leadership. For some, her age had been enough to derail their support.
“I felt her age was a difficulty,” said Jane Putnam, 74, of Houlton. “Were it not for that, I would feel differently about her dropping out.”
Alice Kerr Laird, 77, a retired Lutheran minister from York, expressed a similar sentiment. “I always liked the governor, and I started out thinking, ‘Of course I’ll vote for her,’” she said. “But I had some concern about how old she is, and I was a bit disappointed in the campaign she ran.”
As her despair about the state of the federal government grew in recent months, Ms. Laird said, “the more I felt drawn to the idea that we just need to change the whole mess.”
Others had worried that Ms. Mills’s history of conflict with the Trump administration could limit her potential for success in the Senate.
“I didn’t think Janet Mills would make a good senator anyway, especially for the Native Americans,” said Richard Silliboy, 79, a former Mi’kmaq Nation vice chief who lives in Littleton, in northern Maine, and is still unsure who he will vote for in November. “I think it would have been, for the next two years, tough for Maine with the relationship she and Trump had.”
Mr. Gerritsen, the potato farmer who supports Mr. Platner, said he saw Ms. Mills as belonging to “the wing of the Democratic Party that is closely tied to corporations,” and that it was time for “candidates who are putting the public interest ahead of everything else.”
Bev Chapman, 60, a baker in Houlton who supports Mr. Platner, agreed — even as she offered praise for Ms. Mills.
“She’s been a great governor for Maine,” Ms. Chapman said, “but new blood is needed and we need more progressives running who are not afraid to stand up to the current administration.”
In her statement on Thursday, Ms. Mills closed with an affirmation of affection for the state. “To the people of Maine: I love you, and I will continue to fight relentlessly for you as your Governor,” she wrote.
Monique Vallee, 56, of Ogunquit, a longtime supporter of Ms. Mills who said she would have backed her for Senate, said that message rang true, and added to her sadness at the governor’s announcement.
“She loves Maine,” Ms. Vallee said. “I might not agree with everything she does, but she does love Maine.”
Murray Carpenter contributed reporting from Lewiston, Maine
Jenna Russell is the lead reporter covering New England for The Times. She is based near Boston.
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