​Angus King III, the eldest son of Maine independent Sen. Angus King, is running for governor — an office his father held for two terms.

​“​I’m running for governor because I love our great state. It’s made me who I am, but it’s time we started doing things a different way​,” King said in a video announcing his campaign to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Janet Mills.

The elder King has served as Maine’s junior senator since 2013. He won the first of his two terms as governor in 1994, triumphing over a multicandidate field that included Republican Susan Collins, now the state’s senior senator.

Unlike his father, who has been elected and served as an independent while caucusing with Democrats in the Senate, the younger King intends to run in the Democratic primary. The Democratic field already includes Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows​, while former state Senate President Troy Jackson is also exploring a bid.

Democratic Rep. Jared Golden, who represents Maine’s largely rural 2nd District, has not announced his 2026 plans yet but has been touted as a potential candidate for either governor or Senate.

In an interview with Semafor, the younger King, the founder of a renewable energy company who has never held elective office, said he was running as an outsider and described himself as a “pragmatic moderate.” But he acknowledged the benefits of being the namesake of a popular political figure (who won his third Senate term last year).

“That’s a little bit like asking Wayne Gretzky’s kid as he steps out on the ice, ‘Do you think it helped you to have Wayne Gretzky as your dad?’ The answer is: of course​,” King said.

And he has his father’s support in his first bid for elective office. “I think his combination of smarts, experience, and character will make him an excellent governor of Maine,” the senator said in a statement, before quipping, “In fact, I’m sure he’ll be in the top two governors named Angus ever.”

​Meanwhile, Republican former Gov. Paul LePage launched a bid for Golden’s seat on Monday, while Mills is being recruited to potentially challenge Collins. The governor, however, said in a recent interview that “at this moment, I’m not planning to run for another office.”