A Democratic state senator from Bangor appears poised to enter the ring in one of the nation’s most closely contested congressional races.

State Sen. Joe Baldacci, D-Bangor, said Friday he intends to make an announcement late next week regarding a potential bid to represent Maine’s 2nd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“I’m actively working on it, talking to people and putting together a winning team, but the final decision will come later next week,” Baldacci told the Press Herald.

The final call came down to his family, he said.

“They have generally given me the go-ahead,” he added. “We’re in the final stages of getting this done.”

Rumors have swirled about Baldacci’s candidacy for months. In response to a pollster’s analysis that he would be a “viable” candidate to hold the conservative-leaning seat, Baldacci responded Thursday by writing, “Let’s do it!” in a Facebook post.

Later, he clarified the post was not a confirmation that he plans to run.

Were he to enter the race and win the Democratic nomination, he’d likely face the Donald Trump-endorsed Republican former Gov. Paul LePage in the November general election.

Baldacci has not yet filed campaign paperwork with the Federal Elections Commission.

The state senator has been tiptoeing for months around running for higher office, telling the Press Herald in November he was waiting to see if former state Senate President Troy Jackson would drop his bid for governor to join the congressional race. Jackson hasn’t made that move yet.

Baldacci commissioned a poll of the race that month, according to a report from Punchbowl News. Its results, released in December, found Baldacci trailing LePage by one point, 43% to 44%, and handily defeating his primary opponents — though nearly 40% of primary voters were still undecided.

Democrats have been searching for a candidate to represent the 2nd District following Rep. Jared Golden’s announcement that he will not seek reelection.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, a national group working to elect Democrats to the U.S. House, has been “actively recruiting” for the seat, according to a person familiar with the committee’s work who requested anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the conversations.

Golden’s decision upended the race for what was already expected to be one of the toughest seats in the country for Democrats to hold. Though Golden was elected as a Democrat, President Donald Trump carried the district by nine points in 2024.

Both parties see picking up Maine’s 2nd District as crucial to obtaining what will likely be a thin majority in Congress. National Republicans are looking to flip the district red with LePage, Maine’s former two-term governor.

If Baldacci enters the race, his biggest opponents for the Democratic nomination will likely be current State Auditor and former secretary of state Matt Dunlap and congressional aide Jordan Wood, who dropped his bid for U.S. Senate to run for the 2nd District House seat.

University of Maine social worker Paige Loud and 81-year-old Louis Sigel have also filed FEC paperwork to run for Congress as Democrats.

Baldacci is in his third term as state senator. He previously served 12 years on Bangor’s City Council, including two terms as mayor and council chair, and ran for Congress unsuccessfully in 2016. His brother, John Baldacci, was the 2nd District representative from 1995 to 2003 before serving two terms as governor.