Republican Sen. Susan Collins was born in Caribou, and her familys ties to this northern Maine community run deep. But as voters consider the races on this years ballot, another issue is weighing heavily: the high cost of heating oil amid the ongoing war with Iran.
Maine relies on heating oil more than any other state, and prices are hovering around $6 per gallon, putting added pressure on households as the heating season approaches.
Certainly the cost of fuel is going to be a major concern coming into this season and the heating season, said Jeffrey Heron, who has lived in Caribou since the 1980s.
Heron plans to support Collins but identifies as an independent and has split his ticket before, voting for both President Donald Trump and Independent Sen. Angus King, who caucuses with Democrats, in the 2024 election.
You never know who Im going to vote for, he told Scripps News Group Tuesday with a laugh, standing outside the Caribou Post Office.
RELATED STORY | All eyes on Maine as critical Senate race draws closer
That independent streak is significant in Aroostook County. Trump carried Maines northernmost county by about 25 percentage points in 2024. But voters here also backed Sen. King by 5 points.
Winning over independent and ticket-splitting voters could be critical for Democrats competing in northern Maine.
Democrat Matt Dunlap, who is running for the open U.S. House seat representing Maine’s 2nd Congressional District against former Republican Gov. Paul LePage, said his local ties can help him appeal to voters across party lines.
Look, Ive grown up in this area. I consider people in the second district to be my friends and neighbors, Dunlap said before a town hall event Monday in Presque Isle, Aroostook County’s largest city.
Asked whether he could win voters who supported Trump and might also back Collins, Dunlap told Scripps News Group he’s very confident that people know me. They know what my goals are to try to help them lift themselves up to a better future, and thats what everyone wants, regardless of their political affiliation.
RELATED STORY | The GOP counts on farmers’ votes. As a costly harvest season raises concerns, Trump heads to Kansas
But Sen. Collins is more than a familiar political figure in Caribou. For some voters, connections to her family stretch back generations.
Ive done business with their family,” John DeFelice, a Democratic voter, told Scripps News Group Monday. “I knew her mother and father years ago. She handed my wife her degree when she graduated.”
I made eyeglasses for Susans mother one time, Gwen DeFelice chimed in.
Still, the cost of heating oil is hitting voters across the political spectrum.
Im trying to avoid using my fuel oil, and so Im using a lot of blankets, my winter coat when I sit down, 88-year-old Alice Bolstridge told Scripps News Group Monday.
For Democrats, economic concerns may seem to present an opportunity in northern Maine.
But Collins deep roots in the region and the willingness of voters to cross party lines make the political terrain more complicated.