PORTLAND — Maine Democrats on Thursday called on independent gubernatorial candidate Rick Bennett to denounce money from Republicans who support his candidacy.
Bennett, a state Senator, is a former Republican Party Chairman who dropped his party affiliation last year when he launched his campaign for governor.
“Rick Bennett may be calling himself an independent, but you cannot erase decades of Republican politics with a rebrand,” said Devon Murphy-Anderson, executive director of the Maine Democratic Party. “His record is Republican. His donors are Republicans.”
Specifically, Democrats say a political action committee called Maine Wins Together, which is supporting Bennett, recently received $100,000 from donors who have also given to former Republican Gov. Paul LePage, who is now running for the 2nd Congressional District.
In response, Bennett said he’s getting support from Democrats, Republicans and independents who knows he will focus on “fixing what is broken.”
Bennett will face Democrat Hannah Pingree and Republican Bobby Charles in November. Earlier this week, Charles sent out a press release referring to “Democrat Rick Bennett” as part of his call for a series of town hall debates.
“The corrupt political parties are trying to distract voters because they cannot defend the results of the system they have created,” Bennett said in a statement. “Hannah Pingree is trying to paint me as a Paul LePage Republican. Bobby Charles is trying to paint me as a Janet Mills Democrat. This is the same tired playbook.”
The debate over campaign funds come as new polling shows Pingree with a significant lead over Charles and Bennett.
According to the University of New Hampshire Survey Center, Pingree leads the pack at 49%, followed by Charles at 35% and Bennett at 6%.
When it comes to funds raised by the candidates themselves — which is different from money raised by groups supporting them — Pingree also holds a big advantage.
Pingree raised just over $900,000 in the latest reporting period, compared to $217,507 by Charles and $114,638 by Bennett, according to the Maine Ethics Commission.
“Hannah Pingree is running a formidable campaign, which is exactly what we expect from somebody with her experience,” Murphy-Anderson said. “We feel confident in the polling numbers and the fundraising numbers that back that up.”