Shenna Bellows

Former Candidate, U.S. Senate (ME) · Democratic · Maine

Shenna Bellows is Maine’s Secretary of State; she sought the 2026 Democratic replacement nomination for U.S. Senate before dropping out in July 2026 and endorsing Troy Jackson.

Profile last updated Jul 13, 2026 · Center Field Politics

Shenna Bellows

Currently: Maine Secretary of State

Running for: Former Candidate, U.S. Senate (ME)

Democratic

Running for U.S. Senate (ME) · contested

Home town

Hancock, ME

Political Party

Democratic

Spectrum

Left of Center

Years of Service

5 in current office

Age

Net Worth

Not publicly available

Wealth rank: Not publicly available

Change since first elected: Not publicly available

Work History

Public Offices

Maine Senate (District 14): 4 yrs — 2016–2020.⁷
Maine Secretary of State: 5 yrs — Current office since January 2021; elected by the Legislature.⁷

Before Politics¹

Civil-rights advocate and nonprofit executive

Party Unity / Cross-Party Votes

N/A - no voting record yet

Works across the aisle (career record) - see details.

Promises Kept

4 of 4 tracked (3 fulfilled, 1 in progress)

Core Strength

Statewide profile as Secretary of State, deep civil-liberties résumé, and prior statewide campaign experience against Collins.

Core Weakness

Lost to Collins by a wide margin in 2014, and her Trump ballot ruling remains a lightning rod with swing voters.

Where They Stand

Environment: Supports — Backs clean-energy investment and climate action; endorsed by conservation groups in past races.

Healthcare: Supports — Has long supported universal healthcare coverage and lower drug costs.

Second Amendment: Supports — Supports background-check expansion; as a 2014 candidate she emphasized civil liberties alongside gun-safety measures.

Immigration: Supports — Backs comprehensive reform with legal pathways; defended asylum seekers’ rights at the ACLU of Maine.

Roe v. Wade: Supports — Longtime abortion-rights advocate from her ACLU tenure onward.

National Security: Unclear — No documented public position on U.S. military action against Iran in the current snapshot.

Scout's Report

A veteran election administrator and former legislator who briefly contested the Platner-replacement field after running for governor in 2026, then exited and backed Jackson.

Core Strength

Statewide profile as Secretary of State, deep civil-liberties résumé, and prior statewide campaign experience against Collins.

Core Weakness

Lost to Collins by a wide margin in 2014, and her Trump ballot ruling remains a lightning rod with swing voters.

Recent Action

Dropped out of the Democratic special nominating contest in July 2026 after Jackson secured majority delegate support, and endorsed him.

Key Metrics

Reliability: 96%
Documented Controversies: 0
Funding Secured: $12M

Where They Stand

Stances on the issues many voters care most about. Where a candidate has not given a clear answer we mark it "Mixed / Partial" or "Unclear" rather than guess. Positions are drawn from official records and bias-labeled news sources; they are descriptive only and are never scored.

Environment—Supports³

Climate protections and regulation versus fewer climate-related regulations on industry.

Backs clean-energy investment and climate action; endorsed by conservation groups in past races.

Medium Confidence

Healthcare—Supports³

Expanding healthcare coverage for all versus expanding market-based, private insurance.

Has long supported universal healthcare coverage and lower drug costs.

Medium Confidence

Second Amendment—Supports³

New firearm regulations versus no new firearm regulations.

Supports background-check expansion; as a 2014 candidate she emphasized civil liberties alongside gun-safety measures.

Medium Confidence

Immigration—Supports³

Pathways to citizenship versus a closed-border approach.

Backs comprehensive reform with legal pathways; defended asylum seekers’ rights at the ACLU of Maine.

Medium Confidence

Roe v. Wade—Supports³

Protecting access to abortion versus restricting access to abortion.

Longtime abortion-rights advocate from her ACLU tenure onward.

High Confidence

National Security—Unclear³

Whether diplomacy or military strength should be the primary national-security priority.

No documented public position on U.S. military action against Iran in the current snapshot.

Low Confidence / Insufficient Data

Party Loyalty

Not currently a legislator; loyalty is not scored for this race. Her prior Maine Senate service showed generally party-aligned voting with a civil-liberties independent streak.

Built cross-partisan coalitions before and during office: co-chaired the 2011 ballot campaign restoring same-day voter registration, worked with libertarians and conservatives on privacy issues at the ACLU, and administered elections praised for integrity across parties.

On the 2026 Ballot

U.S. Senate — Maine (Democratic special nominating convention)

Sources

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