Politics
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Former Maine Senate President Troy Jackson is running a more conventional, kitchen-table campaign against U.S. Sen. Susan Collins than the incendiary, anti-”oligarchy” message that defined Graham Platner’s bid before he dropped out.
With control of the Senate on the line and Republicans retaining their large edge in ad spending, Jackson has dropped much of the rhetoric that defined Platner’s campaign, even though he joined Platner on U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders’ “Fighting Oligarchy” tour and still talks often about billionaires not paying their fair share of taxes.
In one of his first ads, Jackson is shown driving and talking with Maine families and laborers, introducing himself as a former logger who rose in politics after leading a 1998 blockade at the Canadian border years ago over the use of foreign labor in the North Woods.
“Susan Collins didn’t help us then, and she’s certainly not helping us now,” Jackson said in the ad. “We’re all getting crushed out here. Healthcare. Housing. Heat. We’ve got to fight back.”
Jackson finished third in the Democrats’ gubernatorial primary in June before quickly ramping up his Senate campaign after Platner withdrew last month amid a rape allegation from an ex-girlfriend and the collapse of his political and financial support. Consultants on both sides describe Platner as more of a showman than Jackson, who has focused on rising oil, fuel and grocery prices, the Iran war and health care cuts under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
“How often does your average Mainer think about the oligarchy?” asked Christopher Nicholas, a Republican consultant who has worked on several U.S. Senate campaigns. “It was easier [for Platner] to go all out against an incumbent having never spent a day researching a vote or horsetrading with colleagues on the floor. Jackson, despite his other faults, has been in a senate before.”
Maine Democratic consultants and Jackson’s campaign said his strategy is to stay focused on Collins’ record and convince longtime supporters of the senator — including many who voted for both her and former President Joe Biden — that she has changed under Trump.
In another early ad, Jackson sits at an office desk in a Boston Red Sox hat, making a direct appeal for campaign help. He said other politicians ask for $3 “and tell you it’s going to save democracy overnight … that’s BS,” but that he needs support given the compressed timeline, now less than 90 days to the election.
“We’re not going to waste money on slick ads with no substance,” Jackson said, a comment that appeared aimed at distinguishing his campaign from Platner’s reliance on out-of-state consultants and media teams.
Collins’ campaign has been running positive ads touting her work securing federal money for Maine. Her latest ad, highlights her role after the Sept. 11 attacks, the Paycheck Protection Program and on the lobster industry, health care, Social Security and as chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee. The ad also cites her rankings atop a list of bipartisan senators.
Jackson and Democrats counter that Collins votes too often with President Donald Trump voting, including on Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade and other Cabinet and judicial picks. Collins’ office points to her breaks with Trump on repealing the Affordable Care Act during his first term as well as tariffs and war powers.
Collins’ team and Republicans argue Jackson, less bold and charismatic than Platner, is trying to fly under the radar and avoid tougher questions on issues facing progressive Democratic candidates nationwide, transgender rights and voter identification. Jackson said earlier this year he stands with the LGBTQ+ community, calling criticism of Bangor’s Pride crosswalk “an absolute joke.”
Republican National Committee spokesperson Natalie Baldassarre called Jackson a “political chameleon” and a “devout socialist” who stood by Platner despite his Nazi-linked tattoo and other controversies.
Two recent digital ads from Stronger America, an outside group backing Collins, pair her with independent U.S. Sen. Angus King, crediting the pair’s Appropriations and Armed Services Committee seats with supporting Bath Iron Works. Other pro-Collins groups have run ads calling Jackson abrasive and tying him to Platner.
Democrats say those attacks were built for a race against Platner and won’t stick to Jackson with voters focused on affordability.
“The whole Collins campaign and Republicans had been gearing up to run against Platner,” said J.J. Balaban, a Democratic strategist and admaker. “Suddenly, now they have to figure out: what’s their playbook?”