Republican Sen. Susan Collins said she will decide by the end of September whether to run for governor of Maine next year.

 

Maine Republican Gov. Paul LePage is term-limited, and several Republicans who are considering a run are waiting on Collins’ decision. Former Department of Health and Human Services Commissioner Mary Mayhew is the only Republican who has declared for the race so far.

 

Collins told WBLZ TV in Bangor on Wednesday that many people have told her that her voice is needed on the national level in the Senate.

 

“On the other hand, I have people come up to me every day saying we need strong leadership in Augusta, someone who can work with Democrats and Republicans,” she said.

 

Collins noted that she is one of the few moderate voices in the Senate. Her vote last month was one of three key ones that killed the Republican repeal of the 2010 health care law last month.

 

“And the work I do across the aisle is very important, perhaps more important than ever in some ways,” she said.

 

Another Maine outlet, WMTW, reported Wednesday a Collins source said the senator was leaning more toward running than earlier in the summer.

 

In April, Collins acknowledged that she was considering a run, saying she would decide where “I can do the most good for the people of Maine.”

 

Collins previously ran for governor in 1994 but lost to her current colleague in the Senate. independent Angus King. She was elected to the Senate two years later.