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If voters were looking purely for politicians with familiar family names, they would have plenty of options in this week's primaries for Maine governor.
Angus King III, a Democrat, is looking to follow in the footsteps of his father and namesake — now one of the state's U.S. senators.
One of King's opponents, Hannah Pingree, has been campaigning with the endorsement of her mom: Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine).
And on the other side of the aisle, a field of GOP primary candidates vowing to "disrupt the status quo" in Augusta includes businessman Jonathan Bush — yes, of that Bush clan.
"I know what you're thinking: Not another Bush!" he opens one campaign ad. "But hear me out."
The candidates' attempts to either run as outsiders or establish their own political brands show how much things have changed for politicians who once would have seen only benefits from running with a well-known political last name.
Such names have long offered connections, donors and endorsements — as well as a degree of familiarity to voters who might have supported a parent or grandparent. Yet at a moment when resentment of elites and the establishment has been growing in both parties, the contests in Maine and elsewhere are showing that these family ties can also present significant downsides for "nepo candidates," as they have been dubbed by some rival campaigns.
"Folks are not as interested in people who feel like the status quo," said Noah Dion, a Democratic strategist. "These names are the status quo."
Dion, who managed Democrat Andy Kim's successful U.S. Senate campaign against Tammy Murphy — then New Jersey's first lady — noted that the United States has for decades entertained what he called "dynastic politics."
The Roosevelts, Clintons, Bushes and many others have leveraged their famous name to a long history in elected office. Today, Congress has at least a dozen sitting members who followed a parent to Capitol Hill, with even more connected via a sibling, spouse or grandparent.
Yet several statewide and congressional races this year will test whether today's scions can extend that success, as rival candidates seek to exploit the growing skepticism among voters.
Beau Bayh, the 30-year-old Democratic nominee for Indiana secretary of state, would be the third generation of his family to hold statewide office. His dad, Evan Bayh, was at one point one of six sitting U.S. senators whose mom or dad had also had that job.
Bayh's primary opponent sought to frame him before his nomination win Saturday as part of a political "dynasty" discordant with the No Kings era — a point Bayh didn't entirely dismiss.
"Having a well-known dad or granddad can only get you so far," Bayh said in an interview. "You need to convince people on your own merits that you're the right person for the job."
It's worked in some cases so far: In Arizona last year, Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D) won a special election race to fill the seat that opened up after the death of her father, Raúl Grijalva. This year, political novice Trever Nehls is poised to succeed his identical twin brother, Rep. Troy E. Nehls (R-Texas).
One of the most notable test cases this year involves a crowded House race in New York City, where Kennedy heir Jack Schlossberg has emerged as one of several potential successors to the retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler (D).
Schlossberg's social media feed — at times satirical, at times provocative, at other times focused on photos of him skateboarding shirtless — has made the 33-year-old a viral phenomenon in recent years.
But he has a thin résumé and reported no earned income of his own in 2025 aside from trust fund earnings, prompting Nadler — among others — to bemoan that Schlossberg lacks "a record of public accomplishment." (Schlossberg's campaign did not respond to a request for comment.)
In New Hampshire, Democratic House candidate Stefany Shaheen has sought to preempt such criticism by emphasizing her career as a health care advocate — and stressing some disagreements with her mom, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D), who is retiring from the Senate next year.
The mother-daughter pair made headlines last fall when Jeanne Shaheen and several other Democratic senators split from their party to end a government shutdown — and Stefany Shaheen, 52, criticized her for it publicly.
Still, in an interview, she characterized her family ties as an asset.
"I was raised with parents and in a family that really focuses on public service and the belief that government is supposed to work for people," she said.
Maine's crowded contests have, to a large extent, become referendums on candidates' outsider credentials. That has led to charges that all three legacy candidates are "nepo babies."
Hannah Pingree, 49, has been recounting how she grew up knocking on doors for her mom but then ran herself, becoming the youngest-ever female statehouse speaker in the country and then heading Maine's policy innovation office under Gov. Janet Mills (D). "I'm proud of my mom. I think people really appreciate her ability to stand up to President Trump," she said in an interview last week. "But they are looking at my campaign for what I've done and my track record."
Jonathan Bush, a health technology entrepreneur whose uncle and cousin both served as president, has been acknowledging his family ties more frequently — but insisting he would still be an outsider in Augusta, the state capital.
Two of his rivals in the GOP primary are lobbyists.
"I'm not getting a lot of advice from the Bush cousins," the 57-year-old told Fox News last week. "I've been a business guy." (His campaign did not make him available for an interview.)
King, a moderate who has been criticized online for failing to distinguish himself from his dad, is switching between both tacks.
He said he appreciates comparisons to his father, a "good public servant," and launched his campaign with an ad declaring: "If you know my dad, you know my values." But he has also emphasized his time as a clean-energy entrepreneur and affordable housing developer. And he stresses that he is a lifelong Democrat, a contrast with his father, an independent who caucuses with Democrats.
In an interview, he compared running as the son of a politician to playing hockey as the offspring of Wayne Gretzky.
"People ask whether it's an advantage. ... The answer is yes, but you still have to go out there and skate. You still have to go out there and shoot the puck," he said. "The name on the back of the jersey doesn't help when you're doing the work."
In his view, he would be shaking things up in Augusta, too.
"People do want change. They do want something different," he said. "I am something different."
Even — he acknowledged — if he wouldn't be the first Angus King to serve as governor.
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