Ex-GOP lawmaker from Maine says he won’t run for his old seat in 2020

Former Rep. Bruce Poliquin (R) on Sunday announced that he would not run for his old Maine seat in 2020, citing “family priorities.”

“FAMILY ALWAYS COMES FIRST. When my brother passed some years ago, I became my parents’ only surviving child. They devoted their lives to raising Jim and me. Now, it’s my turn and responsibility to help care for them,” he wrote in a Facebook post.

“I’ll continue to speak up and battle for what’s right for Maine and America. There are lots of ways I’m already helping Republicans win next November. Then, we’ll see what the future holds for 2022.”

Poliquin lost a close race to Democratic challenger Jared Golden in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District last year after ranked-choice voting was used to determine a winner.

{mosads}In ranked-choice voting, voters submit a ballot that ranks candidates in order of preference. If no candidates initially receive 50 percent of the vote, then the candidate with the fewest first-place votes is eliminated and those votes are reallocated to the voters’ second choices.

He pursued a legal challenge to the state’s voting process immediately after the loss. It was the first race determined by the process.

U.S. District Judge Lance Walker tossed out the lawsuit and Poliquin eventually dropped his challenge to the result.

Golden’s district, in the rural, northern area of Maine, is currently rated by the Cook Political Report as a “Democratic Toss Up.”