Maine Democrats Reset Senate Race Following Candidate Swap
Following a wild 17-day scramble, Democrats in Maine have reset a critical Senate race by replacing Graham Platner with Troy Jackson, a former State Senate president and fifth-generation logger from the state’s north woods. The candidate swap sets off a 100-day contest to unseat five-term Republican Senator Susan Collins, placing the largely rural state at the epicenter of the national battle for Senate control.
Jackson’s Strategy and Financial Hurdles
Mr. Jackson aims to harness the grassroots energy built by Mr. Platner while tying Senator Collins to Donald Trump, noting during his Saturday nomination convention that she voted with the former president 96 percent of the time and supported Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade. However, Mr. Jackson faces a steep financial disadvantage; his campaign started with zero money, whereas Ms. Collins reported $11 million at the end of June, and the Senate Republicans’ main super PAC has announced plans to spend $42 million in Maine.
Collins and GOP Counter-Tactics
Senator Collins and her allies are seeking to chain Mr. Jackson to the platform and baggage of his predecessor, with campaign co-chair Josh Tardy calling the former candidacy “the gift that keeps on giving.” While Mr. Jackson champions progressive policies like Medicare for all and abolishing ICE, Republicans have worked to cast him as a democratic socialist and an Augusta political insider who has spent 24 years in government.
A High-Stakes Contest Ahead
As limited public polling points to a close contest, both candidates confront historical challenges: Ms. Collins must distance herself from an unpopular president, while Mr. Jackson attempts to become the first Democrat to win a Maine Senate race since George Mitchell’s re-election in 1988. Meanwhile, outside groups and political figures have aggressively entered the fray, with a Republican super PAC launching an opening advertisement portraying the two Democratic candidates together and President Trump publicly criticizing Mr. Jackson.
