Democrat Troy Jackson has won the Senate race in Maine, taking a seat the Republicans had held for 30 years. Jackson, a former Maine Senate president and labour organiser who entered the contest in July, defeated the incumbent in a result that counts as a setback for the Republican Party.
Longtime Republican Senator Susan Collins conceded to Jackson early on Wednesday. Her concession closes a tenure of almost thirty years representing the state in the Senate.
Heavy spending marked the closely watched Maine contest
The race drew national attention, and Republican groups poured heavy money into it, donating $76m compared with $40m from Democrats. Jackson’s campaign raised $26.9m through mid-October, slightly more than the $25.2m raised by Collins over the same period.
Also read: Democrats projected to take US House; Senate gains grow · Democrats Win US Senate Control in 2026 Midterm Elections
Tariffs and Collins’s record shaped the final stretch
Maine sits in the far northeast of the United States, bordering Canada, and its economy has been hit by Trump’s tariff disputes with its northern neighbour, a key trading partner. Collins, who has served since 1997, presented herself as a moderate and as a chair of the Senate’s powerful Appropriations Committee serving the state’s 1.4 million residents.
Polls released shortly before the vote pointed to Jackson edging ahead in a tight contest marked by negative campaigning. Collins distanced herself from Trump, but she faced criticism for backing Trump’s legislation and judicial nominees after the Supreme Court ended abortion rights.
Jackson and Collins traded sharp accusations
Jackson campaigned on strengthening the economy and government accountability, casting Collins as a Trump ally and accusing her of corruption. Collins has denied the corruption claim. She stressed her independence, noting she was one of the few Republicans who voted to remove Trump from office after the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, and criticised Jackson’s lack of federal experience and his record in the state legislature.
