LEWISTON — After winning re-election last month by a wide margin, 28-year-old state Sen. Eric Brakey is eyeing what might come next.

He has ruled out a possible gubernatorial bid in 2018 but hedged on whether he might take aim at U.S. Sen. Angus King, an independent who plans to seek a second term as Maine’s junior senator.

Brakey, a Libertarian-minded Republican, said Wednesday he is “not ready to talk publicly” about the race, but “we might have something to say in the new year.”

Brakey has already shown that he may have some statewide star power and the ability to raise enough money to run a plausible campaign against King.

Gov. Paul LePage, who has to give up his office in 2018 because of term limits, has said a number of times that he might take on King.

So if Brakey opts to run, there may well be a battle within Republican ranks for the right to challenge King. Democrats are not expected to field a strong candidate because King caucuses with the Democrats in Washington.

Brakey said he anticipates “a mad scramble” within both the GOP and the Democratic Party to succeed LePage in Augusta. He won’t join in, though.

“I am definitely not running for governor,” the second-term senator said.

But he said he’s not willing to make a similar pledge about the Senate race, which appears to offer a less crowded field.

Brakey’s District 20 is no shoo-in for Republicans. It has switched between parties on a number of occasions.

Even so, Brakey secured 62 percent of the vote last month, only the third time in more than four decades that a Republican has hauled in more than 60 percent in the district. One of those who pulled off the feat is Olympia Snowe, who did it in 1976 before she moved on to represent Maine in the U.S. Senate.

Brakey pointed out that he attracted 9 percent more votes last month than the other Republicans in his district, an indication that he holds some appeal for independents and Democrats.

Brakey said he thinks people like his welfare reform efforts and his commitment to “empowering people, not government.”

He said he has “a lot of irons in the fire” for the upcoming legislative session, including more work on welfare reform and some criminal justice initiatives.

King declared last year he would run again. The former governor captured the open seat in 2012 without much difficulty.

Brakey’s state Senate district includes Lewiston, New Gloucester, Auburn, Poland, Minot and Mechanic Falls.