Maine Republican Senator Olympia Snowe will not seek a fourth term in the U.S. Senate this November, she said in a statement Feb. 28. Condemning the “atmosphere of polarization” that has pervaded American politics, Snowe said she felt a fourth term would not be productive.
“What I have had to consider is how productive an additional term would be,” Snowe said in a written statement. “Unfortunately, I do not realistically expect the partisanship of recent years in the Senate to change over the short term.”
Snowe said the prospect of a tough primary race was not a factor in her decision not to seek reelection.
“With my Spartan ancestry I am a fighter at heart; and I am well prepared for the electoral battle, so that is not the issue,” Snowe said.
Snowe said her campaign had “an exceptionally strong foundation” and that she had “no doubt” that she would have won reelection.
Maine Republican Senator Susan Collins expressed her sadness at Snowe’s decision to leave the Senate.
“I am absolutely devastated to learn that Olympia has decided not to seek re-election to the United States Senate,” she said in a written statement. “It has been a great honor to serve alongside Olympia…Truly, there is no one who works harder on behalf of Maine and our nation.”
Snowe’s decision to not to run leaves the Republican nomination within reach of Tea Party-supported candidate Scott D’Amboise. In a statement released shortly after Snowe’s, D’Amboise, a small businessman and selectman from Lisbon Falls, called himself the “presumptive nominee” of the Republican Party.
“With Maine’s complicated signature process, it is doubtful that any other Republican could collect the requisite number of signatures to appear on the ballot before the March 15 deadline, no matter how much money they spent,” D’Amboise said.
Snowe likely would have won both the Republican primary and the general election. A poll from Public Policy Polling in late October showed the incumbent Senator winning over 62 percent of Republican primary voters, with D’Amboise garnering only 10 percent.
Her support among some conservative members of the GOP remained tenuous, however. At Lincoln County’s Republican Caucuses Feb. 11, Snowe’s representative John Atwood was heckled on several occasions during a speech in favor of the Senator. The same poll that showed Snowe winning handily against D’Amboise had her neck and neck with a generic “more conservative challenger.”
Snowe’s decision to bow out deals a devastating blow to Republican chances at holding the seat, and gives hope to Democrats worried about retaining a majority in the U.S. Senate this November. October’s PPP poll shows D’Amboise losing by eight-points to likely Democrat nominee, former Maine Secretary of State Matt Dunlap. Just under half of polled voters remained undecided, however.
Lincoln County Democratic Committee Chair Valarie Johnson, shocked by Snowe’s decision, said the news gave the Democrats “a good possibility” of picking up the seat.
While she did not explicitly say what her future entailed, Snowe said that she intended “to help give voice to my fellow citizens who believe, as I do, that we must return to an era of civility in government driven by a common purpose to fulfill the promise that is unique to America.”
Snowe said she would end her final term fighting for the people of Maine and the future of the United States.
“I will be forever and unyieldingly grateful for the trust that the people of Maine have placed in me, and for the phenomenal friendship and assistance I have received over the years from my colleagues, my supporters, and my staff, both in Maine and Washington,” she concluded.
Snowe served as the Second Congressional District’s representative to the U.S. House of Representatives from 1979 to 1995. In 1994 she was elected to the U.S Senate, and quickly became an influential moderate voice within her party. Snowe’s bipartisanship earned her the respect of her constituents: In 2006, Snowe won reelection with nearly 75 percent of the vote.
Snowe will hold a news conference in Portland Friday, March 2 to discuss her decision.
