Politics
Our political journalists are based in the Maine State House and have deep source networks across the partisan spectrum in communities all over the state. Their coverage aims to cut through major debates and probe how officials make decisions. Read more Politics coverage here.
U.S. Sen. Susan Collins and Democratic opponent Troy Jackson meet at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Gracie Theater at Husson University in Bangor for the last of their four debates.
Hosted by News Center Maine, the Portland Press Herald and Maine Public, it’s the only debate with a live audience and questions from voters.
It comes just after a Suffolk University poll released Thursday showed Jackson, a former Maine Senate president from Allagash, with a 49% to 47% lead. Collins, a Republican seeking a sixth term, trailed in every public poll in 2020 before winning by nearly 9 points.
The first, second and third debates turned on abortion, President Donald Trump, ethics charges and immigration enforcement. Today is also the deadline for third-quarter campaign finance reports in a race that has drawn a whopping $260 million in ads, smashing the Maine record set in Collins’ 2020 election.
Follow our live updates below.