In the U.S. Senate, my experience, knowledge, and seniority give Maine a powerful voice when decisions are made. I am focused on finding bipartisan solutions to the issues that matter most to Maine families, like lowering the cost of health care and prescription drugs, strengthening Maine’s workforce, expanding housing options, making childcare more affordable, and funding lifesaving research into diseases like Alzheimer’s. As the Appropriations Committee Chair, I have brought historic levels of funding to communities across all 16 counties for projects that create opportunity and improve the quality of life for Mainers. Whether it’s opposing cuts to Medicaid or protecting Social Security, blocking regulations harmful to our lobster industry or helping small businesses, I will always reach across the aisle to deliver results for Maine. No one works harder than the people of Maine, and I will continue to bring that work ethic to the Senate every day.

My top priorities are working across party lines to lower costs, expand economic opportunity, and help make it easier for Mainers to earn a good living while keeping more of their hard-earned paychecks. As Chair of the Appropriations Committee, I’ve secured $1.5 billion for projects in all 16 Maine counties: for hospitals, fire stations, drinking water and wastewater projects, roads, bridges, workforce training programs, housing, and more. That funding helps reduce costs that otherwise fall on local taxpayers and ratepayers. I authored the Social Security Fairness Act, restoring earned benefits for thousands of Mainers. I’ve increased funding for programs that help pay for college and job training; home heating assistance and child care for working families; and medical research to spur disease prevention, treatment, and cures. I’ve led efforts to lower prescription drug costs and expand coverage, and I’ll keep working to lower taxes for hard working Mainers.

I come from Allagash, a small town at the very top of Maine. I know what it feels like when decisions are made by people far away who don’t understand your community or how their choices will affect the people who live there. That has shaped how I’ve approached public service. I listen, I show up, and I fight like hell when Maine people are getting a raw deal. I’ll bring that same approach to the Senate. I’ll fight for the jobs and industries our communities depend on, protect the programs Mainers have worked their whole lives to earn, and make sure Maine isn’t an afterthought when Washington makes decisions. And I’ll always defend Mainers’ right to have a say in those decisions. Our democracy works best when regular people—not wealthy donors or corporate interests—hold the power.

I hear the same thing everywhere I go: people are working hard, sometimes working more than one job, and they still can’t get ahead. A trip to the grocery store costs too much. Housing costs too much. Going to the doctor costs too much. There’s no single bill that fixes all of that. But we know where to start. We can build more housing. We can negotiate lower prescription drug prices and make health care more affordable. We can stop giving corporations and billionaires tax breaks while working people are asked to pay more. And we need to talk about wages. For decades, productivity and corporate profits have grown while workers have been told to make do with less. I’ll fight for stronger unions, higher wages, and an economy where working people actually share in the wealth they create.