The Democrat Troy Jackson has won Maine’s US Senate race, toppling five-term Republican incumbent Susan Collins in one of the biggest upsets of the 2026 midterms.
Jackson, 58, unseated Collins – who has been in the Senate since 1997 – in a closely fought, and often rancorous, race characterized by mutual accusations of corruption and clashes over living costs in the predominantly rural state.
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.
A lumberjack by trade and former state senate president, Jackson sought to break down Collins’ carefully crafted image as a moderate Republican willing to break with the Donald Trump, painting her instead as a loyal supporter of the president.
“We did it. Working people won,” Jackson declared at a victory party in Maine before a crowd of his supporters. “And I’m feeling damn proud to be standing here with you all tonight – or this morning, I guess now.”
Jackson, who ran on a platform of progressive economic populism, had argued that Collins emboldened Trump’s agenda through critical votes, like confirming Brett Kavanaugh, the conservative supreme court justice – which paved the way for overturning the constitutional right to an abortion in the US.
Collins, meanwhile, 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 that Trump lost in 2024, Collins also argued that her independence and influence had delivered tangible results for Maine. She often pointed to the millions of federal dollars she had helped steer home as chair of the Senate appropriations committee.
Both of the nominees were courting a swathe of Mainers who were comfortable splitting the ticket in 2020 – voting for Joe Biden as president and sending Collins back to Washington for another term.
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. The state has also faced the pain of the administration’s sweeping tariffs, which have affected several of Maine’s most critical industries.
The Senate saw a dramatic midterm cycle as the first Democratic nominee, Graham Platner, an oysterman and former marine, was forced to drop out amid a cascade of scandals that culminated in an allegation of sexual assault and rape, which he denied. Collins repeatedly sought to tie Jackson to Platner’s brand of progressivism, noting the two had campaigned together during Jackson’s unsuccessful gubernatorial bid earlier in the year.
Maine Democrats had just weeks to organize a special convention to select a replacement for Platner. After Jackson won, he had just 101 days to mount a Senate campaign.
In the early hours of Wednesday morning, Jackson drew perhaps the biggest cheer of all when he pledged to “fight to abolish ICE”, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency which has been at forefront of Trump’s crackdown.
“Mass agents terrorizing our neighbors and ripping families apart should never be accepted in the United States of America,” said Jackson. “Nobody, nobody should have to wonder whether the constitution still applies to them. And when federal agents abuse their power, they need to be held accountable.”
Addressing Trump “and the billionaires”, he added: “I don’t owe them a damn thing.” The comment drew more resounding cheers.
