Maine brewer latest to enter competitive Democrat primary for Republican Collins' Senate seat

A Maine brewery owner has become the latest Democrat to enter the party's robust 2026 primary race for the Senate seat held by five-term Republican Susan Collins. 

Dan Kleban, 48, the co-founder of the Maine Beer Company, said his campaign would focus on cost-of-living issues and how he started the brewery after being laid off during the 2008 recession, according to the news outlet NOTUS.

“I think Democrats, in particular, we need to show people that we can move beyond the anger and we can move towards action – and paint a picture, and paint a vision for the future of this country that makes their lives better, that revives and restores the idea of the American dream,” Kleban told NOTUS. 

Collins, a moderate Republican in a largely Blue state whose votes over roughly the past nine years rankled the MAGA world, has yet to announce whether she will run for reelection.  

Still, her strategies have helped the GOP keep the seat in a narrowly-divided Senate.

The Democratic field is also in a wait-and-see mode with Gov. Janet Mills weighing a run. 

The two-term governor has said she is “seriously considering” one and would likely receive backing from Washington Democrats 

Others already in the primary include former Capitol Hill staffer Jordan Wood and Graham Platner, a newcomer to campaigns who received the endorsement of Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont Independent who votes with Democrats. 

Kleban has a picture with Mills on his Instagram account, and praised her as a “great governor,” but indicated he would make a decision about his campaign's future after she announced her plans.

“If she decides to run, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” he said. “That’s just premature though.”

Kleban said he considers himself a pragmatic Democrat, citing his small-business experience and his interest in making Democrats the party that helps build again, including housing and a rural healthcare network.

He also Collins’ vote in 2018 to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh was what angered him the most about her, especially after the court overturned Roe v. Wade.