Multiple Democrats questioned by Fox News Digital about Maine Senate candidate Troy Jackson denied knowing anything about a report the Democrat allegedly fathered two children with his second cousin.
Maine voters are weighing concerns about both U.S. Senate candidates, with anxieties over Republican incumbent Sen. Susan Collins' ties to President Donald Trump outpacing concerns about Democratic challenger Troy Jackson's progressive alignment, according to a Fox News statewide poll released Wednesday.
Collins has represented Maine in the Senate since 1997, winning her fifth term in 2020 by nearly 9 percentage points.Â
The new survey shows more than half of Maine voters, 55%, are concerned her voting record aligns with President Trump too often, while fewer, 43%, are worried Jackson is too close to the democratic socialist movement.
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By a 14-point margin, more independents are worried Collins is too close to Trump than are concerned Jackson is too close to the democratic socialists. Â
Jackson, a fifth-generation logger from Allagash and former president of the Maine Senate, replaced Graham Platner as the Democratic nominee in July after Platner withdrew amid an assault allegation.
Jackson’s candidacy makes the contest more of a referendum on Collins: 61% of his supporters say their vote is mainly against Collins, up from 48% when Platner was the opponent. Only 36% say they’re voting for Jackson, down from Platner’s 50%.
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The contrast is even clearer for Collins: 71% of her backers say they’re voting mainly for her, up from 53% in June. Just 27% are voting against Jackson, down from 45% when it was Platner.
Despite a major change in the Democratic ticket, the survey finds the Maine Senate race remains competitive. Jackson tops Collins by 2 percentage points, 48-46%, well within the survey’s margin of sampling error. In June, Collins was ahead of Platner by 3 points. Since then, Collins’ support is down 4 points, while Jackson does 1 point better than Platner.Â
Among the subgroup of voters who rate themselves a 10-out-of-10 on certainty to vote, Jackson’s edge increases to 4 points (50-46%).
By an 8-point margin, more of those backing Collins say their choice is locked in. One in five Jackson supporters say they may change their mind before voting.
Roughly 9 in 10 partisans back their respective candidate, while independents narrowly prefer Jackson.
Jackson’s best groups include liberals, women with a college degree and those under age 35. He also leads among men under age 45 and those in union households. He’s favored by women by 4 points, while men are evenly divided.