Susan Collins, Republican senator from Maine, clearly distanced herself from Donald Trump on Tuesday during a televised debate with his Democratic challenger Troy Jackson, as she sought to present an image of independence in a state that voted against Trump three times.
Proclaiming herself not to be the US president’s “favorite senator”, Collins boasted, highly unusual for a Republican, that she voted with Joe Biden, a Democrat, more than 90% of the time when he was president. She also highlighted her differences with her fellow Republicans, saying she voted against her own party more than any other senator.
Collins’ defensive stance came amid a determined attack from Jackson, 58, a veteran former state lawmaker who was having his first chance to introduce himself to a large audience since replacing Graham Platner as the Democratic nominee in a race that could be vital to the party’s hopes of winning the Senate.
Platner, a former port captain, was forced to withdraw from the race in July after facing allegations of sexual assault, which he denied, leaving Democrats racing against time to replace a candidate who had gained momentum by campaigning on a progressive populist agenda.
Jackson described Collins as a Trump loyalist, saying she voted with the president 96% of the time. He also stubbornly focused on his 2018 vote for conservative Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, linking it to the court’s subsequent overturning of Roe v Wade, which guaranteed the nation’s right to abortion for half a century.
“Tonight is about who you stand with when it counts,” Jackson said in a concise opening statement. “Eight years ago today, Maine women went to Washington and begged Senator Collins not to confirm Brett Kavanaugh, but she did it anyway.
“He helped overturn Roe v Wade, and today she says she has no regrets. Would you trust him to choose the next Supreme Court justice?”
Collins, 73, a senator since 1996, has often presented herself as a moderate who opposes the more radical tendencies of her own party. This posture is consistent with Maine’s profile as a Democratic-leaning state, which Trump did not win in any of his three presidential campaigns and which has voted for Democratic candidates in every election since 1992.
Still, Collins has made unusual efforts to differentiate herself from Trump on a range of issues, including the war with Iran, which she said she voted for nine times, calling it “poorly thought out.”
Collins reacted almost alarmingly when the moderator, Gregg Lagerquist, said Trump had suggested the president might make a campaign visit to Maine.
“I don’t think President Trump will come to Maine,” she said. “He’s talking about going to a lot of different states. I haven’t heard anything from his office and I’m not exactly his favorite senator.”
Collins highlighted his differences with the president on specific issues related to Maine’s economy, including rural health care and tariffs against Canada, with which the state shares a border.
“I have been the fiercest opponent of tariffs imposed on Canada,” she said. “Canada is not China. It is our neighbor and our friends.”
Polls show the two candidates are neck and neck.
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