Conservative Democrat Jared Golden gets a serious challenger

Maine state Auditor Mathew Dunlap announced a primary challenge Monday against Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, telling Salon he was motivated by Golden’s Republican-friendly brand of politics and recent vote for a GOP funding bill that would cause Americans’ health care costs to skyrocket.

Golden, who represents Maine’s sprawling 2nd Congressional District, is well known as one of the most conservative Democrats in the House of Representatives. Ahead of the 2024 election, Golden said that he expected President Donald Trump to win and that he was “OK with that.”

“There’s bad, and even worse. Jared Golden and Paul LePage. Golden voted against unemployment benefits, child tax credits and more affordable healthcare,” an ad announcing Dunlap’s bid said.

More recently, he was the lone Democrat in the House to support a Republican bill to fund the government that would have also slashed subsidies for insurance purchased through the Affordable Care Act, which experts say would lead to health care premiums increasing dramatically and millions losing their health insurance. Golden went on to blame “far-left groups” for the ongoing shutdown, rather than Republicans, who control both Houses of Congress and the White House.

Dunlap, who has served as the state auditor since 2022, told Salon that Mainers deserve better than a representative who will vote in favor of a bill that would strip away their health insurance.

“He’s the only Democrat to vote for that — if followed through to the end, almost 10,000 people in Maine will lose their health insurance. Those that don’t will see increases in their rates up to $238 a month per each and higher,” Dunlap said.

Dunlap indicated that he believes that Democrats are in the right for refusing to vote for the GOP’s government funding bill because of those health care cuts. He also said that it was time for Congress to consider more sweeping changes to the country’s health care system.

“I think it’s time that we have that serious conversation about Medicare for all, or some other single-payer system. I have insurance. I have good insurance, and I had a soft tissue cyst. It’s just annoying; it wasn’t dangerous. And I had it done. It was basically an outpatient procedure. I got the bill, and my co-pay for that was $1,500, which kind of made me sit down a little bit. But I saw the full medical bill is over $12,000. Think about not having health insurance and then developing something like appendicitis. You go bankrupt,” Dunlap said.

Dunlap said that his constituents have also complained that Golden is inaccessible. Earlier this year, Golden announced that he would not hold town halls, citing groups like Indivisible, a grassroots political organization with hundreds of local chapters around the country.

“One of the first questions I’ve gotten from people is, ‘Will you commit to town halls?’ I said, ‘Absolutely.’ That’s the stuff I love. I love interacting with people and hearing what they have to say. That’s how you know what’s going on. Jared is absolutely absent. He doesn’t even walk in parades anymore,” he said. “How can you be in touch with your district if you’re not available to it?”

Dunlap said that he’s also prepared to represent his district and doesn’t see his challenge to Golden as an ideological crusade.

“I’m not running to represent a particular demographic of political philosophy as a moderate or progressive or conservative,” Dunlap said. “A lot of people paint me as a moderate because I’m a sportsman and I have a deer rifle and I go duck hunting and stuff like that.”

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But, in response to questions from Salon, Dunlap did say that he would support a moratorium on weapons sales to Israel. Golden has consistently voted in favor of bills that would transfer weapons to Israel.

In terms of how he is planning to finance his campaign, Dunlap said that he wasn’t inclined to accept corporate PAC money at this juncture and said he would deal with donations on a case-by-case basis and that many candidates who say they refuse corporate donations still end up receiving money from leadership PACs, which in turn take money from corporate donors.

“I certainly will never sell my vote for a political contribution,” Dunlap insisted.

In response to a request for comment, Golden, in a statement provided to Salon, said that he’s “focused on doing the job voters sent me to Congress to do.”

“But I’ll say this,” he added. “Maine’s 2nd District is fiercely independent. It’s one of the most ideologically diverse districts in the country, and deserves someone who represents it as it is. If Matt Dunlap thinks this district will choose him over Paul LePage, he’s got another thing coming.”

He also accused Dunlap of reinventing himself, describing him as “30-year-crony” who was once a “pro-life Democrat.”

“Watching Dunlap try to recreate himself as a progressive would be amusing if it were not so cynical,” Golden said.

Dunlap’s campaign responded to Golden’s comment, saying that Dunlap has never been “pro-life,” and citing comments from Maine state Rep. Michele Meyer, who said that “Matt Dunlap is pro-choice and has a 30 year record of pro-choice votes and advocacy.”