Democrat Troy Jackson unseats Susan Collins in Maine Senate race

Democrat Troy Jackson has won Maine's U.S. Senate race, defeating five-term Republican incumbent Susan Collins in one of the biggest upsets of the 2026 midterms ¹. Collins, who has been in the Senate since 1997, conceded to Jackson on Tuesday night ¹².

Jackson, 58, is a lumberjack by trade and a former state Senate president ¹. He ran on a platform of progressive economic populism, arguing that Collins had emboldened President Donald Trump's agenda through critical votes, including her vote to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh ¹.

On tapeCNN · Nov 4

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Collins cast Jackson as ideologically inconsistent and lacking the experience needed to deliver for Maine at the federal level ¹. As the only Senate Republican running in a state Trump lost in 2024, she argued that her independence and influence had delivered tangible results, often pointing to the millions of federal dollars she helped steer home as chair of the Senate appropriations committee ¹.

The race was one of the country's most expensive and closely watched Senate contests ². Maine has been hit hard by soaring fuel costs tied to Trump's war with Iran and record-high heating oil prices, which began squeezing voters as temperatures fell in the weeks before the election ¹. The state has also faced the pain of the administration's sweeping tariffs, which have affected several of Maine's most critical industries ¹.

From Channel GOPJackson: Collins could defund the Iran warTroy Jackson · 159 plays · captioned, with the source named

Jackson was not the Democrats' original nominee. Graham Platner, an oysterman and former marine, dropped out amid a cascade of scandals that culminated in an allegation of sexual assault and rape, which he denied ¹. Maine Democrats held a special convention to pick a replacement, and after Jackson won, he had just 101 days to mount a Senate campaign ¹.

Democrats seized on a series of reports linking Collins, the top Senate appropriator of federal dollars, to potential bribery and corruption schemes; Collins and her spokespeople denied any wrongdoing ². Collins and Republicans hammered Jackson on past reports of his own hot temper in exchanges with women, which drew pushback from several of his past women colleagues ².

CNN called the race for Jackson just after 12:15 a.m. ET as he led Collins by about five percent, with 68 percent of the vote in ³. Collins has conceded the race to Jackson, according to the Associated Press ³.

The victory delivers Democrats one of their most coveted pickup opportunities this midterm cycle and brings an end to Collins' nearly three-decade tenure in Washington ¹. Collins was the longest-serving Republican woman senator ².

What happens next

Jackson's win gives Democrats a pickup in a race that was viewed as critical to their chances of winning back the Senate ². The result ends a 30-year Senate career for Collins, who was first elected in 1996 ².

That matters because Collins had long defied the political odds in Democratic-leaning Maine by positioning herself as a compromise-minded moderate willing to buck her own party, including by supporting abortion rights ². This year, that winning streak ended ².

The Record

1. Jan 1, 1996Susan Collins was first elected to the Senate ².
2. Nov 3, 2026Collins conceded the Maine Senate race to Democrat Troy Jackson on Tuesday night ².
3. Nov 4, 2026CNN called the race for Jackson just after 12:15 a.m. ET ³.

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<h2>Democrat Troy Jackson unseats Susan Collins in Maine Senate race</h2> <p><em>By The GOP Files Campaign Desk. This article first appeared on <a href="https://thegopfiles.com/story/democrat-troy-jackson-unseats-susan-collins-in-maine-senate-race">The GOP Files</a> on Wednesday, November 4, 2026.</em></p> <p>Democrat Troy Jackson has won Maine&#39;s U.S. Senate race, defeating five-term Republican incumbent Susan Collins in one of the biggest upsets of the 2026 midterms . Collins, who has been in the Senate since 1997, conceded to Jackson on Tuesday night .</p> <p>Jackson, 58, is a lumberjack by trade and a former state Senate president . He ran on a platform of progressive economic populism, arguing that Collins had emboldened President Donald Trump&#39;s agenda through critical votes, including her vote to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh .</p> <p>Collins cast Jackson as ideologically inconsistent and lacking the experience needed to deliver for Maine at the federal level . As the only Senate Republican running in a state Trump lost in 2024, she argued that her independence and influence had delivered tangible results, often pointing to the millions of federal dollars she helped steer home as chair of the Senate appropriations committee .</p> <p>The race was one of the country&#39;s most expensive and closely watched Senate contests . Maine has been hit hard by soaring fuel costs tied to Trump&#39;s war with Iran and record-high heating oil prices, which began squeezing voters as temperatures fell in the weeks before the election . The state has also faced the pain of the administration&#39;s sweeping tariffs, which have affected several of Maine&#39;s most critical industries .</p> <p>Jackson was not the Democrats&#39; original nominee. Graham Platner, an oysterman and former marine, dropped out amid a cascade of scandals that culminated in an allegation of sexual assault and rape, which he denied . Maine Democrats held a special convention to pick a replacement, and after Jackson won, he had just 101 days to mount a Senate campaign .</p> <p>Democrats seized on a series of reports linking Collins, the top Senate appropriator of federal dollars, to potential bribery and corruption schemes; Collins and her spokespeople denied any wrongdoing . Collins and Republicans hammered Jackson on past reports of his own hot temper in exchanges with women, which drew pushback from several of his past women colleagues .</p> <p>CNN called the race for Jackson just after 12:15 a.m. ET as he led Collins by about five percent, with 68 percent of the vote in . Collins has conceded the race to Jackson, according to the Associated Press .</p> <p>The victory delivers Democrats one of their most coveted pickup opportunities this midterm cycle and brings an end to Collins&#39; nearly three-decade tenure in Washington . Collins was the longest-serving Republican woman senator .</p> <h2>What happens next</h2> <p>Jackson&#39;s win gives Democrats a pickup in a race that was viewed as critical to their chances of winning back the Senate . The result ends a 30-year Senate career for Collins, who was first elected in 1996 .</p> <p>That matters because Collins had long defied the political odds in Democratic-leaning Maine by positioning herself as a compromise-minded moderate willing to buck her own party, including by supporting abortion rights . This year, that winning streak ended .</p> <p><em>Read the original, with every source linked, at <a href="https://thegopfiles.com/story/democrat-troy-jackson-unseats-susan-collins-in-maine-senate-race">thegopfiles.com</a>. Republished under The GOP Files' <a href="https://thegopfiles.com/republish">free republishing terms</a>.</em></p> <img src="https://thegopfiles.com/api/rp/democrat-troy-jackson-unseats-susan-collins-in-maine-senate-race.gif" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border:0;width:1px;height:1px">

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Sources

1. The Guardian, “Democrat Troy Jackson defeats Susan Collins to win Maine US Senate seat in blow to Republicans” (2026-11-04). theguardian.com/us-news/2026/nov/03/maine-senate-midterm-res
2. The 19th, “Maine elects Democrat Troy Jackson over Susan Collins, ending her 30-year Senate reign” (2026-11-04). 19thnews.org/2026/11/election-results-maine-senate/
3. Newsweek, “Troy Jackson Beats Susan Collins, Ousting Maine GOP Veteran” (2026-11-04). newsweek.com/susan-collins-troy-jackson-maine-senate-midterm
4. Courthouse News, “Democrats win U.S. Senate seat, governor’s office in Texas” (2026-11-04). courthousenews.com/democrats-win-u-s-senate-seat-governors-o

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