The Bangor Daily News was the first to report this story. What you’re reading here would likely not be made public without the efforts of professional journalists asking questions, interviewing sources and obtaining documents.
I’ve photographed U.S. Sen. Susan Collins for the Bangor Daily News for the past 30 years, documenting campaigns, public appearances, political events and the many moments that come with life in public office.
But there was one moment I had never been able to capture with Collins, or any other politician: what happens behind closed doors on election night, away from the cameras, crowds and campaign celebrations.
That changed Tuesday, when I was given the opportunity to step behind the scenes with Collins as she and her family watched results pour in for an election that would ultimately end her five-term Senate career.
For a photojournalist, access like this is rare. So much of political life takes place in public, where every appearance is orchestrated. Being invited into a private space offered something different — an opportunity to document the quieter, more personal side of an evening that carries enormous significance for those in the room.
There were two reasons I believed Collins might be the one politician willing to trust me with such access. First, Collins has been among the most engaging public figures I’ve photographed, often mingling with the public and media during her appearances. Second, I had heard rumors that she liked my photography.
With those thoughts in mind, I made my request to her press secretary and chief of staff at her election night watch party.
Not long after, her press secretary waved me over and told me we were going up to the senator’s room.
When I walked into Collins’ hotel suite at the Hilton Garden Inn in Bangor around 10:40 p.m., she greeted me and asked what I would like to see. I told her I simply wanted to capture what politicians do on election night when they’re away from their campaign parties.
She chuckled and replied, “This is it.”
Collins and about 10 family members sat and watched CNN report live election results on a TV that hung on a wall. Every seat in the sitting room was filled and some people spilled over into an adjoining room and were watching another TV while sitting on a bed.
The atmosphere was relaxed and people chatted quietly. Phones were checked often. Beverages, including Polar seltzers, sat on a coffee table with whoopie pies and other baked goods.
After about 15 minutes of observing and photographing Collins and the room, I thanked her and her family for allowing me behind the scenes. Collins came over to say goodbye.
About an hour after I left the room, Collins called her opponent, Democrat Troy Jackson, to concede the race in a result that sent shockwaves through Maine and the nation.
For me, it was more than another assignment. It was the completion of a story I had been trying to tell for three decades — a reminder that sometimes the most meaningful photographs happen when someone is willing to open a door and let you in.