Election officials say a ranked-choice voting tabulation aimed at determining the winner of a key congressional race in Maine starts in the coming week

LEWISTON, Maine (AP) — Votes will have to be redistributed under Maine’s ranked choice system to determine the winner of a key congressional race, election officials said. The campaigns of both Republican challenger Austin Theriault and Democratic Rep.

Although U.S. Rep. Jared Golden already gave his victory speech, the race for Maine’s 2nd Congressional District is not final. Because there was an unofficial write-in candidate, in addition to Golden and Republican state Rep.

Democratic Rep. Jared Golden, a moderate known for defying party orthodoxy, is in a tight race to keep his seat in Congress against Austin Theriault, a stock car driver and Republican state lawmaker.

If they picked a number two after that first choice blank or write-in, then that does get tabulated in the ranked choice voting tabulation,” Maine Secretary of State Shenna B

The bruising and expensive race for Maine's 2nd District seat is headed to a ranked choice runoff in which a write-in candidate and blank ballots could play roles.

Secretary of State Shenna Bellows announced ranked-choice tabulation will be required based on the initial results of the General Election for Maine Congressional District 2. The ranked choice voting tabulation is a public process that will begin next week in Augusta.

The Maine Secretary of State's Office says neither incumbent Jared Golden nor challenger Austin Theriault received more than half the vote in the U.S. House race.