Janet Mills | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Mills in 2019 | |
| 75thGovernor of Maine | |
| Assumed office January 2, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Paul LePage |
| 55th and 57thAttorney General of Maine | |
| In office January 7, 2013 – January 2, 2019 | |
| Governor | Paul LePage |
| Preceded by | William Schneider |
| Succeeded by | Aaron Frey |
| In office January 6, 2009 – January 6, 2011 | |
| Governor | John Baldacci |
| Preceded by | Steven Rowe |
| Succeeded by | William Schneider |
| Member of theMaine House of Representatives | |
| In office December 4, 2002 – January 6, 2009 | |
| Preceded by | Walter Gooley |
| Succeeded by | Lance Harvell |
| Constituency | 78th district (2002–2004) 89th district (2004–2009) |
| District Attorney ofAndroscoggin,Franklin, andOxford Counties | |
| In office 1980 – January 1995 | |
| Appointed by | Joseph E. Brennan |
| Preceded by | Thomas E. Delahanty II |
| Succeeded by | Norman Croteau |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Janet Trafton Mills (1947-12-30)December 30, 1947 (age 77) Farmington, Maine, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | |
| Relatives | S. Peter Mills Jr. (father) Peter Mills (brother) |
| Education | Colby College University of Massachusetts, Boston (BA) University of Maine (JD) |
| Website | Office website Campaign website |
Mills on her style of governing and legislative accomplishments. Recorded September 7, 2022 | |
Janet Trafton Mills (born December 30, 1947) is an American politician and lawyer serving since 2019 as the 75thgovernor of Maine. She served four nonconsecutive two-year terms asMaine Attorney General, from 2009 to 2011 and from 2013 to 2019.
A member of theDemocratic Party, Mills was first elected attorney general by theMaine Legislature on January 6, 2009, succeedingG. Steven Rowe. Her second term began on January 3, 2013, after the term ofWilliam Schneider. She was the first woman to hold the position. Before her election, she served in theMaine House of Representatives, representing the towns ofFarmington andIndustry. Her party nominated her for governor in the2018 election, and she won, defeatingRepublicanShawn Moody and independentTerry Hayes. On January 2, 2019, she became Maine's first female governor.[1] Mills was reelected in2022.[2]
On October 14, 2025, Mills launched her campaign in the2026 United States Senate election in Maine, challenging five-term incumbent RepublicanSusan Collins.[3]
Mills was born inFarmington, Maine, on December 30, 1947, the daughter of Katherine Louise (Coffin) andSumner Peter Mills Jr.[4][5] Her mother was a schoolteacher andCongregationalist,[6] while her father was a lawyer who served as U.S. Attorney for Maine in the 1950s.[4] Mills graduated from Farmington High School in 1965. As a teenager, she spent nearly a year bedridden in a full-body cast due to severescoliosis, which was corrected surgically.[7]
Mills briefly attendedColby College before moving toSan Francisco,[4] where she worked as a nursing assistant in a psychiatric hospital.[5] She later enrolled at theUniversity of Massachusetts Boston, from which she graduated with a bachelor of arts degree in 1970.[4] During her time at UMass Boston, Mills traveled through Western Europe and became fluent in French.[8] In 1973, she began attending theUniversity of Maine School of Law,[4] and in 1974 was a summer intern in Washington, D.C., for civil rights attorneyCharles Morgan Jr. of theAmerican Civil Liberties Union.[4] Mills graduated with aJuris Doctor in 1976 and was admitted to the bar.[4]
Mills was appointed as Maine's first female criminal prosecutor by GovernorJoe Brennan,[9] and was an assistant attorney general from 1976 to 1980, prosecuting homicides and other major crimes. In 1980, she was elected district attorney forAndroscoggin,Franklin andOxford counties, a position to which she was reelected three times. She was the first woman district attorney inNew England.[9] In1994, Mills was an unsuccessful candidate for theUnited States Congress inMaine's 2nd congressional district, losing the Democratic primary toJohn Baldacci.[10]
Mills co-founded theMaine Women's Lobby and was elected to its board of directors in 1998.[11]
In 2000, Mills served as a field coordinator forBill Bradley's2000 presidential campaign in Maine.[12] In 2002, she was elected to theMaine House of Representatives. There, she served on thejudiciary,criminal justice, andappropriations committees. She was reelected in 2004, 2006, and 2008.
Mills was elected to her fourth term when the Joint Convention convened in December 2008 to elect the new attorney general. She became Maine's 55th attorney general on January 6, 2009.[13] When Republicans gained control of the Maine legislature in 2010, Mills was not reelected. In January 2011, she was elected vice chair of theMaine Democratic Party.[14] She joined the law firm Preti Flaherty in February 2011 as a lawyer with the firm's Litigation Group in itsAugusta office.[15] After Democrats regained control of the legislature in the 2012 elections, Mills was again chosen as attorney general, resigned as vice chair of the Maine Democratic Party,[16] and took the oath of office as attorney general on January 7, 2013.[17] She was reelected on December 3, 2014, despite the Maine Senate coming under Republican control.[18]
Republican governorPaul LePage opposed Mills for attorney general due to many disputes between them over the legality of some of LePage's policies.[19] On January 28, 2015, he requested theMaine Supreme Judicial Court's opinion as to whether the governor's office needed the attorney general's office's permission to retain outside counsel when the attorney general declines to represent the State in a legal matter. LePage did so after Mills twice declined to represent him in matters she determined had little legal merit, though she approved his requests for outside lawyers.[20] On May 1, 2017, LePage sued Mills, asserting that she had abused her authority by refusing to represent the state in legal matters, or taking a legal view contrary to the LePage administration's.[21]
On July 10, 2017, Mills announced that she would seek the Democratic nomination for governor of Maine in 2018.[22] One of several candidates in the primary, she won the nomination in June, finishing first after four rounds of ranked-choice voting gave her 54% to her closest competitor's 46%.[23]
In the general election, Mills faced Republican nomineeShawn Moody, independentMaine State TreasurerTerry Hayes, and independent businessman Alan Caron. Endorsed by every major newspaper in Maine and theBoston Globe, buoyed by major ad buys from Democratic political action committees and receiving Caron's endorsement a week before the polls closed, Mills was elected with 50.9% of the vote to Moody's 43.2%. She became Maine's first female governor, the first Maine gubernatorial candidate to be elected with at least 50% of the vote sinceAngus King in1998, and the first to win at least 50% of the vote for a first term sinceKenneth M. Curtis in1966. She received over 320,000 votes, more than any governor in the state's history.[24]
Mills's campaign was aided in part by a Democratic super PAC that financed Maine-themed ads meant to attract young voters on social media.[25] Both Mills and outside groups outspent Moody by an average of $15 per vote cast, for a total of $10.7 million.[26]
Mills ran for reelection in 2022.[27] She faced no opposition in the primaries, making her the Democratic nominee. In the general election, Mills defeated the Republican nominee, former governorPaul LePage, securing a second term.[28] She received over 373,000 votes, breaking the record for the most votes ever cast for a gubernatorial candidate, set four years earlier.[29][30]
One of Mills's first acts as governor was to sign anexecutive order to carry out the expansion of Maine'sMedicaid program as called for by a2017 referendum, something LePage had refused to do. This fulfilled a major campaign pledge.[31] Mills also dropped work requirements for Medicaid that LePage requested toward the end of his tenure and that had theTrump Administration's approval. She said the work requirements "leave more Maine people uninsured without improving their participation in the workforce".[32]
Mills revived the tradition of Maine governors attendingMartin Luther King Jr. Day commemoration events inPortland, doing so in 2019.[33]
In September 2019,United NationsSecretary-GeneralAntónio Guterres asked Mills to speak at theGeneral Assembly onclimate change. Mills told world leaders at the UN that she intends to make Mainecarbon neutral by 2045.[34] She was the first sitting Maine governor to address the General Assembly.[35]
On June 11, 2021, Mills announced the end of thestate of emergency started on March 15, 2020, due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[36][37] The state of emergency ended on June 30, 2021.[38]
On June 24, 2021, Mills vetoed seven bills, including one that would have closed theLong Creek Youth Development Center, ajuvenile prison. The vetoes received harsh rebuke from progressive Democrats in the Legislature.[39]
On April 20, 2022, Mills signed into law the Maine state supplemental budget, which included freecommunity college for students of the class of 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.[40][41]
In December 2022, a month after her reelection to theBlaine House, Mills told thePortland Press Herald she did not "plan to run for anything else".[42] In November 2024, the same paper reported that she would not rule out a 2026 campaign for Maine'sUnited States Senate seat held by five-term incumbent RepublicanSusan Collins. Collins is the only Republican representing a stateDonald Trump failed to win in any of his three presidential campaigns. She was reelected by eight points over Maine House SpeakerSara Gideon in2020. Mills endorsed Gideon in that race.[43]
In July 2025,NOTUS reported that Mills was still considering entering the race.[44] In August,Axios reported that Democratic Senate leaderChuck Schumer was actively recruiting Mills to challenge Collins.[45] Later that month, Mills told reporters she might decide whether to enter the race in November.[46]
August also saw the campaign launch ofSullivan Harbor MasterGraham Platner, running in the Democratic primary on a progressive-populist platform. Platner was endorsed by SenatorBernie Sanders and organized labor.[47] In October, Sanders publicly discouraged Mills from challenging Platner,[48] who had raised over $3.2 million from small donors in the seven weeks since his campaign launch.[49]Axios reported on October 7 that Mills was planning to enter the race by the end of the month[50] and on October 10 that Mills would formally enter the race on October 14, citing a leaked campaign document.[51] The same day, anActBlue page was launched and a fundraising video was posted toTwitter, but both were deleted.[52]
Mills formally announced her candidacy on October 14.[3] She has said she plans to serve only one term if elected.[53] If elected, she would be the oldest freshman senator in U.S. history at 79 when she is sworn in.[54] In a campaign launch video, she highlighted her opposition to Donald Trump with clips oftheir confrontation in February 2025.[55] Mills has been endorsed by SenatorsChuck Schumer andCatherine Cortez Masto.[56][57] After she announced her candidacy, Democratic candidates Dan Kleban and Daira Smith-Rodriguez left the race and endorsed Mills.[58]
Mills identifies as amoderate Democrat and has often broken the party line with the Democrat-controlledMaine Legislature.[59]
Mills has taken steps to expand access to abortion procedures, signing legislation to mandate that both public and private insurance agencies include abortion procedures within the scope of their coverage.[60] After the leak of the 2022Supreme Court decision inDobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, Mills reaffirmed her position that "unlike an apparent majority of the Supreme Court, I do not consider the rights of women to be dispensable."[61]
Mills has expressed her opposition to thedecriminalization of small possessions of drugs.[62]
Mills has enacted regulations to curb the use of materials that harm the environment. One such policy, prohibiting the use of plastic bags by Maine retailers, went into effect on April 22, 2020.[63] She also signed into law a ban on the use of styrofoam containers by various industries within the state. This regulation became effective on January 1, 2021.[64]
In 2019, the Central Maine Power Company was granted all necessary permissions to begin work on a corridor running from Beattie Township to a power grid in Lewiston, Maine.[65] Despite Mills's initial skepticism of the proposal and pushback from critics, changes to the budget caused Mills to sign the agreement.[66][67]
Mills has also enacted regulatory standards for the quality of water on Indigenous reservations used for sustenance fishing.[68]
During her remarks at the UN General Assembly, Mills pledged that Maine would have a carbon-neutral economy by 2045.[69]
In 2023, Mills was elected co-chair of the bipartisan Climate Alliance.[70]
Mills supports retaining theU.S Senate filibuster, the 60-vote threshold for most legislation.[71]
As a state legislator, Mills received A or A+ grades from theNational Rifle Association.[72] When she ran for governor in 2018, her grade from the same organization was "F".[72]
TheFirearms Policy Coalition criticized Mills for a series of posts in which she and the organization interacted.[73] Mills reported the FPC for a tweet in which the FPC posted, "Hey @GovJanetMills, Three words: Fuck you. No." in response to news that "Mills is leaving the door open for a possible assault weapons ban following the Lewiston shooting."[73]
Mills opposesred flag laws, instead supporting "yellow flag laws" for gun safety.[74] In 2025, after activists gathered enough signatures to trigger areferendum on implementing a red flag law, Mills endorsed a No vote.[75]
Mills supportsLGBT rights. In May 2019, she signed a bill banningconversion therapy, thepseudoscientific practice aimed at changing one's sexual orientation, from being used on minors.[76][77][78] One year earlier, the same bill had passed both chambers of theMaine Legislature, but was vetoed by then-GovernorPaul LePage.[79] In June 2021, she officially declared JuneLGBTQ+ Pride Month.[80]
Mills supportstransgender athletes' participation in sports that align with their identity. On February 21, 2025, she publicly clashed with PresidentDonald Trump on the issue. Trump threatened to cut federal funding if Mills did not comply withhis executive order to prevent transgender athletes from participating in sports aligning with their identity. Mills told Trump "see you in court", and later released a statement saying "The State of Maine will not be intimidated by the President's threats."[81][82]
After Mills's exchange with Trump, Maine's Department of Education was unable to access federal funds for a child nutrition program. The state sued theU.S. Department of Agriculture over the frozen funds, and a judge ordered the administration to unfreeze them. On May 2, 2025, the Trump administration agreed to unfreeze the funds, and Maine agreed to drop the lawsuit.[83]
Mills has expressed her opposition to the regulation ofsports betting.[84]
Mills has taken steps to improve relations with Maine's native tribes, despite her prior rocky relationship with them as attorney general. This includes signing a bill to replace theColumbus Day state holiday withIndigenous People's Day and pledging to work to fill seats on a state-tribal commission that had been left empty under her predecessor.[85] She also signed a bill to establish stricter water quality standards for rivers used by Maine's tribes for sustenance fishing, something long sought by the tribes. It also ended a legal dispute between the tribes and the state, for which Mills as attorney general had defended the state's position.[68]
As governor-elect, Mills said that the use of Native American imagery and nomenclature associated withMaine School District 54 and its Skowhegan high school was "a source of pain and anguish" for the state's Indigenous population.[86] After taking office, she signed into law a measure to ban the use of such references in public schools.[87]
In 1985, Mills married real estate developer Stanley Kuklinski and became stepmother to his five daughters. Kuklinski died due to the effects of a stroke on September 24, 2014.[88] She is the sister ofPeter Mills (a former Republican state senator and gubernatorial candidate in2006 and2010), Dora Anne Mills (former public health director and director of the Maine Center for Disease Control), and Paul Mills.[89]
Mills's primary residence is inFarmington, Maine, where she was born and raised.[90] As governor, she resides at theBlaine House, the governor's mansion inAugusta.[91]
Mills has five grandchildren.[90]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | John Baldacci | 12,091 | 27.3 | |
| Democratic | James F. Mitchell | 9,993 | 22.6 | |
| Democratic | Janet Mills | 7,858 | 17.7 | |
| Democratic | James Howaniec | 6,306 | 14.2 | |
| Democratic | Mary Cathcart | 5,580 | 12.6 | |
| Democratic | Jean Hay Bright | 2,043 | 4.6 | |
| Democratic | Shawn T. Hallisley | 413 | 0.9 | |
| Party | Candidate | Maximum round | Maximum votes | Share in maximum round | Maximum votes First round votes Transfer votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Janet Mills | 4 | 63,384 | 54.1% | | |
| Democratic | Adam Cote | 4 | 53,866 | 45.9% | | |
| Democratic | Betsy Sweet | 3 | 29,944 | 24.4% | | |
| Democratic | Mark Eves | 2 | 19,521 | 15.7% | | |
| Democratic | Mark Dion | 1 | 5,200 | 4.1% | | |
| Democratic | Diane Russell | 1 | 2,728 | 2.2% | | |
| Democratic | Donna Dion | 1 | 1,596 | 1.3% | | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Janet Mills | 320,962 | 50.9 | |
| Republican | Shawn Moody | 272,311 | 43.2 | |
| Independent | Terry Hayes | 37,268 | 5.9 | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Janet Mills (incumbent) | 74,311 | 100 | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Janet Mills (incumbent) | 376,934 | 55.7 | |
| Republican | Paul LePage | 287,304 | 42.4 | |
| Independent | Sam Hunkler | 12,581 | 1.9 | |
| Legal offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Attorney General of Maine 2009–2011 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by William Schneider | Attorney General of Maine 2013–2019 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forGovernor of Maine 2018,2022 | Most recent |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Governor of Maine 2019–present | Incumbent |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byasVice President | Order of precedence of the United States Within Maine | Succeeded by Mayor of city in which event is held |
| Succeeded by OtherwiseMike Johnson asSpeaker of the House | ||
| Preceded byasGovernor of Alabama | Order of precedence of the United States Outside Maine | Succeeded byasGovernor of Missouri |
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