Rep. Jared Golden’s (D-Maine) putative primary challenger, State Auditor Matt Dunlap, poses the incumbent congressman a serious threat, according to a new polling memo obtained by Breitbart, coming within two points of the incumbent with 25 percent still undecided. Dunlap has said he might run, but not yet formally announced that he will.
“The poll numbers continue to paint an unmistakable picture: Serial flip-flopper Jared Golden is wildly unpopular among Democrats and Republicans,” a spokeswoman for the National Republican Congressional Committee said of the report. “Voters are fed up and Golden should spend the long weekend updating his resume,” the NRCC’s Maureen O’Toole added.
According to polling data, Democratic voters appear to have soured on Rep. Golden, with 76 percent of the 388 likely Democratic primary voters polled saying that he is not doing enough to combat President Donald Trump.
This view is likely due to Golden’s frequent breaks with the more radical elements in his party and his willingness to vote with Republicans on some issues. In 2024, for example, he voted with Republicans in favor of a resolution condemning former Vice President Kamala Harris’s catastrophic performance as “border czar.”
[RELATED: Jared Golden Sides with Republicans on House Resolution Condemning Kamala Harris as ‘Border Czar’…]
Despite frustration with his performance, Golden narrowly maintained a positive approval rating, with 46 percent of respondents having a favorable view of him compared to 42 percent who view him unfavorably.
In contrast to Golden’s narrow four-point approval, Dunlap’s approval rating was up by a full 20 points, with 31 percent viewing him favorably compared to just 11 percent who disapproved.
In a head-to-head contest between Golden and Dunlap, the incumbent led by just two points, polling at 39 percent compared with Dunlap’s 37.
Given the poll’s finding that a quarter of likely voters are undecided, the race appears to have no clear frontrunner, giving Dunlap the chance to potentially snatch the nomination away from Golden.
According to Breitbart, the memo stated that Dunlap has “a clear path to victory” and claims that Golden’s “flip-flopping” on issues, such as his shift in favor of gun control measures following the 2023 shooting in Lewiston, has damaged his reputation with voters.
In the lead-up to the 2024 election, his then-Republican challenger, Austin Theriault, focused his campaign on attacking Golden for flip-flopping but was not ultimately able to unseat him.
Dunlap isn’t the only challenge facing Golden, however. Even if he manages to win in his primary, the incumbent will likely face off against Republican frontrunner Paul LePage, who served as Maine’s governor prior to Gov. Janet Mills (D).
LePage appears to be outpacing Golden in fundraising, raising more from early May to early July than Golden did in all of 2025’s first quarter.
[RELATED: LePage Exceeds $500,000 in Donations After Just Two Months in the CD-2 Race, Campaign Says…]
Additionally, two polls, one from the Congressional Leadership Fund and one from the University of New Hampshire conducted in May and June, respectively, gave LePage a slight edge over Golden.
