Collins, Jackson clash in first Maine Senate debate: 4 takeaways
From the Article
Reported by The Hill. The paragraphs below are the opening of that article, reproduced word for word — not a summary, and not the whole piece.
Republican Sen. Susan Collins and Democrat Troy Jackson faced off Tuesday in the first debate of their neck-and-neck Senate race in Maine.
A rare Republican to win statewide in blue-leaning Maine, five-term Collins used the debate stage to spotlight times she’s bucked her party, from her pro-choice position to her vote against President Trump’s signature “Big Beautiful Bill” — while Jackson, a former president of the state Senate, tied Collins to Trump’s agenda and hammered her controversial vote to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
The candidates also sparred over immigration, healthcare and abortion rights in the hourlong WGME program as polls indicate a tight race that could reshape Maine politics.
Jackson became the party’s pick to take on Collins this fall after Graham Platner, a progressive who won the party’s initial primary, withdrew amid sexual misconduct allegations. Despite a shortened campaign runway, Jackson has been leading Collins by roughly a point in Decision Desk HQ’s polling averages of the race, and top forecasters rate the race a critical toss-up in the fight for Senate control.
The rivals are expected to face off in three more debates over the next two weeks, with the next set for Thursday.
Collins was reelected in 2014 by nearly 40 points, but notched another term by a comparatively narrow 9 points in 2020 after Democrats in the state were outraged by her 2018 vote to confirm Kavanaugh to the nation’s highest court.
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