MDP Launches Website on Rick Bennett’s Republican Record

MDP Launches Website on Rick Bennett's Republican Record

Rick's Receipts: The Record Maine Voters Should Know

Augusta, Maine - Today, the Maine Democratic Party launched a new website detailing Rick Bennett's longstanding track record as a Republican operative and politician. "Rick's Receipts" lays out the facts about Bennett, including his years of loyalty to the Maine GOP, close ties to Paul LePage, support for Donald Trump, and an agenda that would roll back health care and reproductive rights for Mainers.

Maine Democratic Party executive director Devon Murphy-Anderson released the following statement:

"Rick Bennett isn't an independent voice for Mainers, he's a Republican in sheep's clothing. Now that he's running for governor he wants Mainers to forget that he spent his career working with Paul LePage and opposing Planned Parenthood and MaineCare expansion. Rick Bennett wants Mainers to believe he's something different - but the receipts tell the real story."

Key Points From Rick's Receipts:

1. Rick Bennett was a proud Trump supporter and even attended his inauguration.

• Rick supported Donald Trump throughout his 2016 campaign, even after the release of the Access Hollywood tapes.

• Rick bragged about serving as Donald Trump's second congressional district electoral college elector and went to the Republican National Convention to select Trump as the Republican nominee. Rick now says that he was simply fulfilling his duty as an elector. But attending Trump's January 2017 inauguration was not a required or expected part of his role as the electoral college elector - and Rick still went.

2. Rick led the operation to advance and enact Paul LePage's dangerous policy agenda. He served on LePage's transition team and oversaw his reelection.

• Rick was the Chairman of the Maine Republican Party during Paul LePage's tenure as Governor - a role Susan Collins endorsed him for and Paul LePage "virtually handpicked" him for.

• From 1994 to 2017, Rick supported and received support from Maine Republicans like Governor Paul LePage, Senator Susan Collins, and Linda Bean.

• LePage later wrote Rick a recommendation letter for a State Department job in the Trump Administration.

3. Rick Bennett has a bad record on abortion rights.

• In 2022, Rick supported defunding Planned Parenthood.

• In 2024, he voted against putting a referendum to a vote to enshrine abortion protections in Maine's constitution.

• Although he received a 93% score from Planned Parenthood in 2025, which is the year he decided to run for governor, in 2024 his track record earned him a 38% score.

Screenshot of Rick Bennett's Issues Page in 2022

4. Rick Bennett has consistently opposed MaineCare expansion.

• Rick voted against MaineCare expansion.

• He was Chair of the Maine GOP while Paul LePage repeatedly vetoed legislation to expand MaineCare.

• In 2017, Rick even tried to reframe Maine's ballot question to expand MaineCare to confuse voters in an effort to defeat the initiative.

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