Democrats Pick Troy Jackson to Challenge Sen. Collins in Maine Senate Race

Jackson, a former state Senate president, is the Democrats’ replacement nominee after Graham Platner dropped out following sexual assault allegations.

Maine candidate for governor Troy Jackson speaks during a May Day rally organized by local unions, outside City Hall in Portland, Maine, on May 1, 2026. Graeme Sloan/Getty Images

Maine Democrats selected former state Senate President Troy Jackson on July 25 as their party’s nominee to challenge incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins.

Jackson succeeded Graham Platner as the Democratic nominee at the Maine Democrats’ convention in Bangor. About 600 party delegates were present. The Senate race is one of the most crucial as Republicans look to hold onto the upper congressional chamber, while Democrats look to take it back.

“Thank you, Maine. Solidarity forever,” Jackson wrote in a post on X following his nomination.

Whereas Platner, who dropped out following controversies including allegations of sexual assault, which he denied, was a novice in the world of politics, Jackson is a veteran, having served in the Maine House of Representatives from 2002 to 2008 and the state Senate from 2008 to 2014 and 2016 to 2024. He was the president of the state Senate from 2018 to 2024.

Platner’s exit before the July 13 deadline allowed Jackson and others to jump in the race to take on Collins.

Prior to entering politics, Jackson worked as a logger in one of Maine’s most well-known sectors—which he has emphasized during his campaign.

“We’re not from the left. We’re not from the right. We’re from the bottom, and we’re rising,” Jackson said in another post shared on X. “November, we will defeat Susan Collins.”

Voters in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, which has supported Trump in every presidential election since 2016, will play a crucial role in the Senate race. Jackson will likely work to garner further support in that district—which consists of a strong logging industry—in addition to the 1st Congressional District, which leans Democratic.

During his logging days, Jackson was involved in activism.

In 1998, Jackson was crucial in organizing a week-long blockade of the U.S.–Canadian border. Maine loggers physically blocked Canadian trucks from entering the state. This was a protest over the practice of hiring temporary Canadian workers, which had been increasing at the time.

Despite being a progressive Democrat, Jackson began his political career as a Republican. Following the blockade, he unsuccessfully ran in 2000 as a Republican for the Maine House of Representatives. At the time, he was opposed to abortion, a position he has since reversed.

Jackson ran again in 2002, this time as an independent, and won, beating the candidate he lost to two years prior. He changed his affiliation to Democratic in 2004 and has remained in the party since.

Jackson served as a delegate at the 2016 Democratic National Convention and was part of a small number of delegates who voted for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who lost to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Clinton went on to lose the election to President Donald Trump.

Jackson unsuccessfully ran for governor this year, losing to Hannah Pingree.

Jackson’s platform includes Medicare for All, lowering the cost of prescription drugs, tax cuts for the working class, abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ending U.S. support for Israel’s military, and banning members of Congress from trading stocks.