Robert Bruce Charles (born August 23, 1960) is an American lawyer. He is the Republican Party's nominee for governor of Maine in the 2026 election, and a vocal supporter of increased presence of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Maine.
Charles founded The Charles Group, a consulting firm based in Washington, D.C."The Charles Group, LLC." http://charlesgroupdc.com/default.aspx
Early life and education Charles grew up in a small town of Wayne, Maine, where his mother, Doris Anne, was a teacher. He married Marina Timasheff in 1988.
He received a Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School in 1987, a Master of Arts in philosophy, politics, and economics (PPE) on a Keasbey Scholarship from New College, Oxford in 1984, and a Bachelor of Arts from Dartmouth College in 1982.
Political career Between 2003 and 2005, Charles worked for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). One of the INL's missions during this time was to conduct counter-narcotics and build police forces in Afghanistan. More than a dozen federal audits conducted over this period found a "failure to accomplish primary foreign policy goals", and criticized the operation's leaders for failing to effectively countering narcotics, despite receiving 1.2 billion dollars in funding.
2026 gubernatorial campaign
In early April 2025, Charles announced his run in the 2026 Maine gubernatorial election. On June 9, he won the Republican nomination by a wide margin. He will face Democratic nominee Hannah Pingree and Independent Rick Bennett in the November general election.
Charles is active on social media during the campaign, having uploaded numerous videos about himself conversing with local residents in Maine.
ICE
Charles is a vocal supporter for increased presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Maine. According to Maine Democratic Party, Charles "doubled down" on his support for ICE after being challenged, defending his position as necessary to prevent voter fraud, to prevent "intimidation" or "violence," and claims he would "make an appeal for ICE and Marshals to be at our voting booths."
In September 2026, Charles's sister Anita announced that she would be supporting Pingree in an op-ed in the Portland Press Herald. Anita criticized her brother for his conduct during the campaign, for his views on abortion, and for maintaining a friendship with Dennis Hastert, the former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives who was accused of child molestation and convicted in a hush-money case related to the allegations.
References
External links