The issues that finally brought Susan Collins down in Maine’s Senate race
A difficult race in Maine
Collins had repeatedly won reelection in an increasingly blue state, where many voters valued her ability to bring federal funding home and sometimes break with her party. Her record had made her an unusual Republican success in national politics.
This time, Trump’s unpopularity in Maine posed a challenge. Collins was the only Republican senator seeking reelection in a state Trump lost in 2024. A late October Marist poll found 42 percent of likely voters approved of Trump’s performance, while 58 percent disapproved; an August Fox News poll found more than half thought Collins supported him too often.
Costs weighed on voters
Collins had some high-profile disagreements with Trump, including voting to convict him after January 6 and opposing his Canadian tariffs. But she struggled to answer voters’ concerns about rising expenses.
In the Marist poll, 46 percent of likely voters said their household finances had worsened over the past year. The final Times/Siena poll before the election found cost of living was Maine voters’ leading issue; 51 percent trusted Jackson to handle it, compared with 44 percent for Collins. The same poll showed Jackson ahead 51 to 45 percent, after Collins led 49 to 46 percent in September.
Abortion rights entered the race
Abortion was the second-largest focus of campaign ads in Maine, behind Trump and healthcare, according to Vox’s September reporting. Planned Parenthood made its largest ad purchase of the 2026 cycle in Maine against Collins, while a Senate Democratic-aligned super PAC devoted 70 percent of its advertising spending in the state to abortion-related messages.
The campaign highlighted Collins’s decisive vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, despite her identifying as pro-choice. She reaffirmed that vote over the summer and continued to support confirming judges whom Democrats described as anti-abortion. A Planned Parenthood Votes spokesperson said abortion was “the number one negative in Maine voters’ mind,” though fewer than half a percent named it as their top issue.
Key points
- Susan Collins conceded her Maine Senate seat to Democratic challenger Troy Jackson.
- Voters favored Jackson over Collins on cost of living, according to the final Times/Siena poll.
- Abortion rights became a major focus of campaign advertising in Maine.
- Collins faced criticism over healthcare costs and her role in the Medicaid debate.