Collins and Jackson End Maine Senate Debates Arguing Over Trump and Party Loyalty
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Republican Sen. Susan Collins and Democratic challenger Troy Jackson wrapped up four debates in two weeks on Thursday, with their final face-off in Bangor centered on how much President Donald Trump will shape the Maine Senate race, NBC News reported. The contest could help decide which party controls the Senate next year.
The last debate was the first with a live audience. Roughly 200 people attended at Husson University, and a protester's outburst produced one of the night's sharpest exchanges, according to NBC News and Fox News.
Jackson's case: Collins stands with Trump
Jackson, a former state Senate president and logger, tied Collins to Trump in all four debates, NBC News reported. He argued that whenever Trump needs Collins, she is there for him, and he said that has happened repeatedly.
He also said Collins could have done more to oppose the war in Iran. Asked where he would part ways with his own party, Jackson pointed to his refusal to take corporate political action committee money, saying Democrats remain too close to it. He described his campaign as one fighting for working-class people.
On impeachment, Jackson said he would vote to convict Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, then added that his focus is health care, prescription drugs, child care and ending the Iran war to stabilize prices, according to NBC News.
Collins' case: an independent record and seniority
Collins, who is seeking a sixth term, said she has voted against her own party more often than any other senator. She said Jackson would be an automatic vote for the Democratic position. Fox News reported that she called herself the most bipartisan member of the Senate.
She noted that she voted against last year's sweeping tax and spending law, though NBC News pointed out she did vote to let it advance on the Senate floor. She also said she has voted nine times against the president on the Iran war.
Collins pressed her seniority and her role as chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, arguing it has helped bring federal money to Maine. Asked about her vote to confirm Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., she said she did not regret it, though she disagrees with his vaccine skepticism, NBC News reported.
She used her one question for Jackson to ask about ads run in coordination with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which accepts corporate PAC money. Jackson said he does not approve those ads. He acknowledged some billionaire support but said small-dollar donors power his campaign.
The heckler and the exchange on class
About 20 minutes in, a young man stood and shouted about data centers and his fears for the future. As he was escorted out, he shouted, “Thirty years for what?” in an apparent reference to Collins' tenure, according to both outlets.
Collins said the man was a Jackson supporter. Jackson fired back that he did not know him and told her to be quiet.
Later, Jackson asked Collins whether she looks down only on him or on working-class people generally. Collins replied that she does not look down on anyone, saying she grew up in Caribou and her first job was picking potatoes, both outlets reported.
Why it matters for Maine voters and Senate control
Trump's policies ran through every major topic, NBC News reported: high costs, the Iran war, immigration enforcement and a trade war with Canada, which borders Maine. Fox News added rising fuel prices, electricity rates, budget deficits, Supreme Court reform, dark money, an assault weapons ban and climate change to the list.
Fox News said recent polls show a race within the margin of error and that its own rankings and several nonpartisan handicappers rate it a toss-up. Collins is the only Republican senator seeking re-election in a state Trump lost in 2024, according to Fox News. NBC News noted that Trump has never won Maine.
Money is a point of contrast. According to a report filed Thursday, Jackson raised more than $20 million from July through September, nearly four times the $5.2 million Collins raised in that period, NBC News reported.
How the race got here
Jackson won a special nominating convention in late July after primary winner Graham Platner ended his campaign, Fox News reported. Collins has survived past Democratic challenges. Six years ago she trailed Democrat Sara Gideon in polls but won by nearly nine points, Fox News said.
Voters interviewed by NBC News reflected the split. Mary Ann Lynch, a lifelong Democrat backing Collins, said the debates did not change her mind and questioned whether Jackson could build a leadership path in Washington. A Penobscot County commissioner, Dan Tremble, said the effort to tie Collins to Trump resonates with him.
