Democratic candidate Michael Michaud took the lead in the latest campaign finance reports detailing donations and expenses on Tuesday with over US$1 million cash-on-hand.

Trailing closely behind him is Maine incumbent governor Paul LePage (R) with US$917,000 on hand whom Michaud seeks to dethrone in the upcoming November elections.

Like Us on Facebook

Michaud reportedly raised US$355,808 from 14,500 individuals in the period between May 28 and July 15 while the Republican governor gathered US$234,128.

The Democrat challenger has collected almost US$2 million in his campaign war chest since he decided to run for governor over a year ago.

Meanwhile, in third place is independent candidate Eliot Cutler at US$527,000 and has reached the US$2 million mark in campaign funds after he released almost US$1 million from his own pocket, vowing to match every donation in his campaign funds from June 24 to July 15.

He has refused to accept any donation from political action groups stating that the citizens of Maine are "tired of special interests running the show in Augusta."

LePage flaunted his expenses reaching only around US$65,382 during the month and a half period while Michaud spent up to US$164,319.

The Portland Press Herald showed a University of Hampshire Survey Center sampling that indicated Michaud would receive 40 percent support from likely voters for the upcoming election while his contenders LePage and Cutler garnered 36 and 15 percent respectively. The remaining 7 percent told polls that they were undecided.

Before releasing the campaign finance reports, the Maine Ethics Commission fined the incumbent governor US$5,000 for failing to comply with the 24-hour reporting of two US$1,500-dollar donations in his campaign funds.

In June, he was also penalized for missing two deadlines in filing of 24-hour reports for five donations amounting to US$5,850.

TagsMaine, Michael Michaud, Eliot Cutler, Paul LePage