Democrat Troy Jackson defeated Republican Sen. Susan Collins in Maine's election for the United States Senate early Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026, flipping a seat Republicans had held for 30 years.1,4,7,8
CBS News and NBC News projected Jackson as the winner, and The Associated Press declared him the winner at 1:02 a.m. EST. The outcome gave Democrats a pickup in a state Kamala Harris won in 2024, where Collins was the sole Republican incumbent seeking reelection.1,3,4
As of early Wednesday, Jackson had 52.4 percent of the vote to 47.5 percent for Collins, in figures from NBC News cited by the Daily Caller. Collins conceded to Jackson late on election night before the race was officially called, ending her run for a sixth term.4,8
Jackson, 58, is a fifth-generation logger and former president of the Maine state Senate who lost a bid for governor earlier this year. He has described himself as a champion of the working class and campaigned on strengthening the economy and government accountability.1,7
Jackson entered the race in July after the party's initial nominee, Graham Platner, withdrew. Maine Democrats then selected Jackson as the replacement nominee, formally choosing him at a special party convention two weeks later rather than through a statewide ballot, after a primary process that briefly left Democrats without a candidate.1,4,8
Platner had become the Democratic nominee in June after defeating Gov. Janet Mills in the primary, and several polls had suggested he could unseat Collins. He came under scrutiny for a skull-and-crossbones tattoo from his service in the United States Marine Corps that resembled a Nazi symbol known as the Totenkopf, and after a former girlfriend, Lyndsey Fifield, accused him of physical abuse and said he had known about the tattoo's resemblance to Nazi insignia longer than he had disclosed. He was subsequently accused of sexual assault by another former girlfriend. After several prominent Democrats withdrew endorsements, Platner suspended his campaign one day after those allegations became public in July.1,8
Against Collins, 73, Jackson argued she had not gone far enough in opposing President Trump and focused on her support for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, which paved the way for the court to overturn the federal right to an abortion in 2022. Collins questioned Jackson's effectiveness as a legislator and pointed to the influence she said she had wielded for Maine in the Senate, where she chairs the Appropriations Committee serving the state's 1.4 million residents.1,7
Collins distanced herself from Trump during the campaign but drew criticism for voting for his legislation and judicial nominees after the court ended abortion rights. Jackson described Collins as an ally of Trump and accused her of corruption, which she denied. Collins pointed to her independence, including being one of the few Republicans who voted to remove Trump from office after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, and criticized Jackson for his lack of federal experience and his voting record in the state legislature.7
The race was among the most closely watched in the country and was shaped by negative campaigning, with late polls showing Jackson narrowly ahead. Republican groups spent $76 million on the race compared with $40 million by Democrats, while Jackson's campaign raised $26.9 million and Collins raised $25.2 million through mid-October.7
Democrats had long sought to defeat Collins, a five-term senator with a record of breaking with Trump who had survived difficult political conditions in the past. Maine has supported Democrats for president since 1992, and Collins was running while Trump was deeply unpopular. CBS News said the projected victory came after flips in races that were not initially expected to be competitive, after the unpopular war in Iran and persistently high gas and diesel prices expanded a map once favorable to the GOP, while Al Jazeera said Maine's economy had been affected by Trump's tariff wars with Canada, its northern neighbor and key trading partner.1,4,7
Jackson also drew scrutiny during the campaign over his long relationship with his second cousin, Lana Pelletier. The two have been together for nearly 40 years and have two sons together. They share great-grandparents and have never been legally married.8
Jackson spoke at an election night event in Portland after Collins conceded. The Daily Caller said Collins was first elected in 1996, while Al Jazeera said she had served since 1997, and the reports agree her defeat ends nearly three decades in the Senate. Democrats flipped seven Senate seats including Maine, Iowa, North Carolina, Texas, Ohio, Kansas and South Carolina, according to that account.4,7,8
