WASHINGTON _ There has been no shortage of speculation that Maine Sen. Susan Collins would run for governor in 2018. But she addressed the subject in an interview with WGAN radio Tuesday morning.
"Let me say that I am looking at where I can do the most good for the people of Maine," said Collins, according to a report in the Portland Press Herald. "In the Senate I now have significant seniority and that allows me to do a lot."
Collins serves on the Appropriations, Selection Intelligence and Health, Education, Labor & Pensions committees. She recently spearheaded a letter to Senate leadership urging them to preserve the legislative filibuster.
"Coming to be governor, if I were fortunate enough to be elected ... you can work on issues I care a lot (about) like economic development, jobs, education. And I would try to heal the state and bring people back together, which I think is important as well," she said.
Current Gov. Paul LePage, who is serving his second term, has been a source of controversy for the Pine Tree State.
If elected, Collins would be the first female governor of Maine. But she remains undecided about running. "I'm being totally honest with you _ I truly don't know, I really don't, it's a hard decision," she told the radio hosts.
Collins is up for re-election to the Senate in 2020. She won her 2014 re-election by nearly 40 points. Should Collins decide to run for governor and resign her Senate seat, LePage would appoint a replacement until the 2020 election.
Collins ran for governor in 1994, losing out to now Independent Sen. Angus King. The state's junior senator is up for re-election next year.
