And The Winner Is

Troy Jackson has been declared the winner of the Maine U.S. Senate general election, defeating incumbent Susan Collins in a race all major rating services had called a Toss-up. With 86 percent of estimated votes counted, Jackson led Collins 340,686 (53.8 percent) to 292,102 (46.1 percent), a margin of roughly 7.7 percentage points, according to the Associated Press. ​

The Race

Pre-election polling aggregated by Legis1 had shown Jackson leading Collins by 4.5 points, 50.7 percent to 46.2 percent, as of Nov. 2, 2026. The unofficial AP margin stands at approximately 48,584 votes, representing roughly 7.7 percentage points, at 86 percent of estimated votes counted.

Collins, who first took office in 1997 and had served 29 years according to her official biography and Congress.gov, was seeking re-election after her last Senate victory in the 2020 race. Collins is the incumbent and the previous holder of the seat.

Jackson spent his truncated campaign slamming Collins for her corporate entanglements she’s one of the top data center investors in the Senate—and revelations by ProPublica about her apparent involvement in a defense contracts influence scandal.

Jackson also tied Collins to Trump on the issue of immigration, noting that she’d voted in favor of billions of dollars for ICE and the Border Patrol After ICE agent David Brouillette killed 25-year-old Johan Sebastian Durán Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine, this July, the state quickly passed laws requiring its agencies to refuse cooperation with ICE. 

Collins's 119th Congress Record

Collins served 29 years in the Senate, having first taken office in 1997, according to her official biography and Congress.gov. In the 119th Congress, she carried a substantial legislative and committee portfolio.

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According to the U.S. Senate committee assignment listing at senate.gov, Collins chaired the Senate Appropriations Committee and the Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations, and also served on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (HELP) and the Select Committee on Intelligence, along with multiple other Appropriations subcommittees.

Money

Jackson outraised Collins by approximately $1.65 million in total receipts, $26,872,873.96 to $25,225,468.39. Total receipts across all candidates in the race reached approximately $87.8 million, as stated in the race record.

Collins ended the race with more cash on hand, $2,689,882.54 to Jackson's $1,596,870.56, a difference of approximately $1.09 million.

Confirmed outside spending totaled $15.4 million, with $1.55 million in independent expenditures opposing Collins and $1.76 million supporting Jackson; the total including pending filings reached $149.2 million, according to the race record as of Nov. 4, 2026.

Among the confirmed independent expenditures on record:

  • Planned Parenthood Votes, a super PAC, filed a confirmed independent expenditure of $603,752 opposing Collins for digital ads disseminated July 31, 2026.
  • Reproductive Freedom for All Freedom Fund, a super PAC, reported $86,260.17 opposing Collins for direct mail advertising disseminated Sept. 1, 2026.
  • ClearPath Action Fund, Inc., a super PAC, reported $78,000 and $100,000 in separate expenditures supporting Collins, with the $78,000 item described as digital media production and placement and the $100,000 item described as media production and placement, disseminated Aug. 14 and Aug. 20, 2026, respectively.
  • SLF PAC, a super PAC, reported $1,957,218.21 opposing Jackson for media placement, disseminated Sept. 9, 2026.
  • Government That Works PAC reported $113,375 supporting Jackson for a digital ad buy disseminated Aug. 11, 2026, and another $113,375 supporting Jackson disseminated Aug. 20, 2026.

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