Alliances continue to form in the crowded Maine gubernatorial race, with a long-shot Republican candidate encouraging his supporters to rank Jonathan Bush second on the June primary ballot.

Bush, a healthcare executive from Cape Elizabeth who is the cousin of former President George W. Bush and the nephew of former President George H.W. Bush, used a campaign news release Thursday to share how fellow GOP candidate Robert Wessels, a former Paris select board member with retail management experience, will serve as his “CD2 Grassroots Chair.”

Wessels, who launched his gubernatorial bid in 2023, was quoted in the release as saying he is not dropping out of the race, but is encouraging his supporters to join him in ranking Bush second on the June 9 ranked-choice primary ballot.

The announcement marks a strange turn in the race, with Maine Republicans previously bashing ranked-choice voting but now preparing to use it for the crowded gubernatorial race that features seven GOP contenders and five Democratic candidates hoping to succeed Gov. Janet Mills.

“Jonathan and I closely align on the solutions to fix our government and our economy,” Wessels said in the release from the Bush campaign. “I’m excited that his plans to shrink government line up so well with my own.”

Under ranked-choice voting, if no candidate receives more than 50% of votes in the initial round, the last-place finisher is eliminated, and the eliminated candidates’ second-choice votes are reallocated. This process then repeats itself until the leading candidate receives more than 50% of the votes.

The decision from Wessels, who did not qualify for Thursday evening’s debate hosted by the Bangor Daily News and WGME due to not meeting the criteria of reaching 5% support in an independent poll of the race, comes as the GOP field has largely teamed up in going after Leeds attorney Bobby Charles. Charles has led the GOP field in several polls.

Charles skipped a debate Tuesday and said he will skip Thursday’s debate due to Wessels not getting included in it. He appeared in a previous debate, and is scheduled to attend one next week. On Thursday, Charles is slated to join Wessels for a National Prayer Day livestream.

Bush, who has been butting heads with Charles in dueling attack ads from their campaigns, also said Thursday that state Sen. Jim Libby, R-Standish, will serve as his “Grassroots Chair” for Maine’s 1st District. Last month, Libby ended his own gubernatorial campaign amid Clean Elections Act-related controversies.

Bush said the two chairs will help organize supporters across the state.

“Robert and Jim are such strong voices for what we need to get done to fix this state,” Bush said. “We need an outsider CEO — not a lobbyist — to shrink Augusta, cut taxes and rebuild our economy.”