Former Maine Republican Gov. Paul LePage addresses the media Monday during a campaign event at Auburn Concrete. Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Mike Johnson of Louisiana, left, came to Maine to stump for LePage in his bid to win the 2nd Congressional District seat over Democrat Matt Dunlap. (Russ Dillingham/Staff Photographer)

AUBURN — House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, traveled to Maine on Monday to back former Gov. Paul LePage’s 2nd District campaign.

The afternoon event at Auburn Concrete and Auburn Aggregates in the key swing city next to LePage’s birth city of Lewiston was the third news conference the Republican has held with reporters in August after largely sticking to a quieter schedule since he launched his political comeback attempt last year. His campaign billed Monday’s appearance ahead of time as featuring a “major, national public figure.”

Maine’s 2nd District race is viewed nationally as one of the likelier seats for Republicans to flip while trying to hold onto their thin majority this fall. Johnson, who has been speaker since 2023, acknowledged the president’s party often loses seats during a midterm election year but insisted “that’s not going to happen” this cycle.

“(LePage) is one of the most qualified and competent people who have ever run for the House of Representatives … since 1789,” said Johnson, who was in Virginia earlier Monday to stump for a Republican candidate amid the August recess.

Three House Republicans — Reps. Stephanie Bice of Oklahoma, Ben Cline of Virginia and Craig Goldman of Texas— traveled with Johnson to Maine and stood to the side during Monday’s presser.

Johnson also visited the Auburn Mall in 2024 to rally support for Republican Austin Theriault, who narrowly lost that year’s 2nd District race to Rep. Jared Golden, the moderate Democrat who is not seeking reelection to the seat he has held since 2019.

LePage, flanked by about a dozen Auburn Concrete employees in hard hats Monday afternoon and three cement trucks outside the Auburn company, touted some of his gubernatorial accomplishments with Johnson at his side and said he has “never been a back bencher.”

The 77-year-old former Waterville mayor and businessman would become one of the oldest first-time House members if elected. LePage said he will run “as long as my health and sanity holds up,” in response to a question regarding how many terms he would serve. House members are elected to two-year terms.

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Mike Johnson stumps for former Gov. Paul LePage at Auburn Concrete on Monday. Both Johnson and LePage criticized Gov. Janet Mills’ administration for not applying the “no taxes on overtime” provision of President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act. (Russ Dillingham/Staff Photographer)<?xml version="1.0"?> Purchase this image

LePage and Johnson each criticized Gov. Janet Mills’ administration for not applying the “no taxes on overtime” provision of Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, saying it would have benefited Auburn Concrete workers last year to the tune of more than $270,000.

“We need to convince the left to be reasonable and to help Maine people,” LePage said.

LePage’s other events this month in Holden and Fairfield featured him receiving endorsements from the National Rifle Association and U.S. Chamber of Commerce while taking a few questions on broader issues such as the economy, Iran and President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

LePage, who led Maine from 2011-19 and who is using an Augusta apartment as his registered address for the campaign, is hoping to beat State Auditor Matt Dunlap in November and win back the district that has thrice backed Trump while also electing Golden to four terms. Golden, a Lewiston resident and Marine veteran, cited incivility and threats against his family in not seeking reelection.

Dunlap, 61, is a Bar Harbor native and Old Town resident who previously served as a state representative, secretary of state and director of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine. He is running on a fairly progressive platform and is betting that enough 2nd District voters are tired of LePage after his controversial soundbites as governor, his subsequent moves to Florida and his attempted Blaine House comeback in 2022 that saw Mills beat him handily. Still, most election forecasters currently view the 2nd District contest as a “likely Republican” race.

Republicans hold a slim 218-212 majority in the House, with four vacancies and oddsmakers expecting Democrats to have a decent shot at flipping the chamber in this year’s midterms. The GOP’s 53-47 edge in the Senate looks more difficult to flip, though Democrats could take charge if they win key races in Maine, Alaska, Michigan and other states.