Jake Plante is a resident of Brunswick and the author of the book “Uncle Sam and Mother Earth: Reflections on the Environmental Movement and the Role of Governance.”

In the upcoming 2026 Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, Gov. Janet Mills has to overcome some concerns that she’s too old to run. Acknowledging her age, she has promised to serve only one term if elected. That makes sense since she’ll be 78 next November and 85 at the end of a six-year term. Sen. Susan Collins ought to take the same pledge.

But there’s more than age to consider. Janet Mills has been a hard-working governor and has earned her stripes serving as a strong state attorney general for eight years, standing up to Donald Trump and Paul LePage and winning two decisive gubernatorial elections, defeating Shawn Moody by 51-43% in 2018 and Paul LePage by 56-42% in 2022.

I don’t agree with Mills on everything. For example, I thought she made a mistake opposing the red flag law, which gives law enforcement another way to prevent something like the Lewiston heartbreak from happening again. Most Mainers thought so too.

However, I think Mills is right most of the time. She’s principled and she’s not one to back down under pressure, which can’t be said of Collins, who seems caught in the headlights. A Mills victory would revive what’s needed: common sense, civility, compassion and courage. In addition, she’s got the “X” factor, electability, which Democrats certainly need to weigh in choosing their candidate.

Some Democrats, including many young voters, are lining up for Graham Platner (age 41). They want the generational shift now, not tomorrow. It’s an understandable appeal, one that appeals to me also. But Platner carries significant risk without any major political experience or track record. He’s largely undefined and we know that the Republican playbook is to brand any Democrat — any Democrat — as an extreme radical to the left of Mao Zedong or Karl Marx.

Platner has offered up a lot of fodder by saying he’s “a communist” and disparaging everyone from police and rural Americans to female victims of assault to African Americans. Good for Platner for disowning his early comments, but I can just see the flurry of vicious and damaging Republican ads coming, and they may land with a knockout.

Anyone in their 70s and 80s faces a health risk. It’s not crazy to imagine a scenario in which Mills wins the Senate race but her health fails before she finishes her term and has to step down. What then?

My understanding is that the current governor would appoint an interim senator until the next statewide election. And this election would surely be the moment of generational change — no more Collins, Mills has stepped down and the Democratic and Republican fields are now wide open for a new crop of young politicians.

Democrats have to decide if Mills, whose heart is in the right place and has done a good job in many ways, still has the vinegar to fight the good fight against Collins. If so, the worry should not be whether Mills will be on her A-game for all six years but whether Mills is the best bet to beat Collins next November, less than a year from now, and end the foolishness.

Whomever Democrats choose, the goal is to unseat Sen. Collins, who capitulated to a wannabe
dictator when it mattered. To succeed, all of the Democrats who’ve voted for Collins in the past need to come home. As they say, “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.” Falling for Collins’ schtick again is shameful.

Meanwhile, a lively Democratic primary would be a good thing. Let’s listen to the policy
debates and see how the process plays out. In the end, however, Democrats need to unite and work hard for the party nominee. “Taking your ball and going home” this time around is not an option.