This will sound goofy but it tells you a lot, I think, in terms of reading the room. Gideon's first major campaign ad featured her wearing a Patagonia jacket. In Maine. Against someone who was playing the "she's not from here" card.

Mainers tend to be very proud of Maine and its institutions, and wary of non-Mainers in power. Silly or no, you have to recognize that's what you're dealing with.

Wondering if uninspiring and directionless Gideon getting all this local and national attention hampered people knowing about Lisa Savage's campaign, which then reduced turnout for people who might have ranked Gideon second if they had been inspired to show up to begin with

Don't know if this happened, if it's galaxy brain in a good way or a bad way, but it feels like a major failure on some level that even with ranked choice it's easy to keep people at home feeling like there is no other option or point to this

Gideon's whole thing was like "I changed the seating arrangements in the House so the different parties had to work together!" and "your hospital bills probably shouldn't be higher but also maybe should not be lower" so idk excuse my fellow Mainers for not being thrilled

The promise for change Gideon's campaign had via Maine Dems sending it out in mailers was "one less Senator for ole Mitch McConnell!" and I just need someone to consider that if that's your primary argument to people who think the system will never serve them you've already lost