AUGUSTA, Maine — National Democrats are working quickly to recruit a candidate to run in Maine’s 2nd District following U.S. Rep. Jared Golden’s stunning Wednesday decision to leave the 2026 race for the battleground seat.

The behind-the-scenes wrangling underscores the difficulty that the congressman’s party will have in replacing him in a rural district won three times by President-elect Donald Trump. Former Gov. Paul LePage is now the odds-on favorite to flip a seat that could be crucial to keeping the House in Republican hands come next year.

House Democrats’ campaign arm is “actively recruiting” a candidate for the seat, a person familiar with its plans said Thursday. That indicates a lack of confidence in State Auditor Matt Dunlap, who was running a primary against Golden and may have to contend with more candidates entering the fray.

“Following the lead of insiders in Washington has taken us to minority status,” Dunlap said in a statement. “I think the people of Maine know what they want in a candidate. I believe I am that candidate, and I am going to win.”

One name to watch is former Senate President Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, who is running for governor with strong support from organized labor. His campaign released a noncommittal and cryptic statement on Thursday amid rumors that he was considering flipping races.

It will be an uphill battle for any Democrat getting into the 2nd District race. Trump pushed it firmly into the Republican column with his 2016 victory. Golden was able to eke out victories by appealing to a small segment of that party’s base, narrowly defeating former state Rep. Austin Theriault in a 2024 election that came down to military and overseas ballots.

LePage led Golden in two polls of the district conducted by the University of New Hampshire, including one last week. Golden used a Bangor Daily News Op-Ed to say he was confident that he would have beaten LePage but was pushed to drop out by increasing political incivility and cases of violence that led him to reassess threats against him and his family.

Republicans were giddy after he dropped out. LePage’s campaign shared the poll results to push the idea that Golden was hesitant to run against the former governor and dismissed the idea that there were any Democrats to fear in the 2nd District given LePage’s record there.

“I don’t know that it really matters that the Democrats are fighting amongst themselves or have political operatives from D.C. trying to tell them who they should elect,” Brent Littlefield, LePage’s strategist, said.

Jackson released a statement on Thursday saying he was flattered by those reaching out to him about switching races, noting that he represented a Maine Senate district based in the St. John Valley that is socially conservative and has swung toward Republicans.

But he did not clearly answer a question about whether he was considering it. He also attacked LePage, with whom he shared a long history with in the State House. In 2013, LePage famously targeted Jackson with a crude remark during a dispute over budget issues, saying he “claims to be for the people but he’s the first one to give it to the people without providing Vaseline.”

“Paul LePage is a disgraced grifter from Florida who cares more about tax cuts for wealthy donors than fighting for hard working Mainers,” Jackson said.

Another possibility is Chief Kirk Francis of the Penobscot Nation, who was on the verge of a Democratic U.S. Senate primary when he was arrested on a drunk-driving charge last May.

“In the short time since Congressman Golden announced he is not running for re-election, [Francis] has been approached by numerous people encouraging him to run,” a person familiar with Francis’ decision-making process said Wednesday. “He will be discussing with his family, friends and supporters to determine if this is the right time for him to run for Congress.”