What Ocasio-Cortez and Manchin’s dueling visits say about Maine’s Senate race

In the final leg of Maine’s tight Senate race, Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican, is trying to shore up her support in the center. Troy Jackson, his progressive Democratic challenger, is trying to excite his party’s base.

Their contrasting strategies were on display over two days this week in a race that could determine control of the Senate.

On Thursday, Mr. Jackson, wearing a button-down shirt under a navy blue vest, appeared at a theater in the state’s largest city, joined by Representative Alexandria-Ocasio Cortez of New York, a 37-year-old democratic socialist who is considering a run for president. The visit followed trips by Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, two progressive leaders, to Maine to support Mr. Jackson.

On Wednesday, Ms. Collins, dressed in a light blue suit, joined a 79-year-old retired senator with centrist credentials, former Sen. Joe Manchin III of West Virginia, a former Democrat, for low-key stops at a century-old restaurant and a dusty shoe factory in politically divided regions.

“I’m not AOC,” Mr. Manchin said with a smile.

The two days of campaigning gave indications of the areas in which each side believes they have work to do with the electorate less than two weeks before election day. And they underscored the choice Maine voters face.