Troy Jackson touts $2 million fundraising haul after nomination to replace Platner
Maine Senate candidate Troy Jackson announced a notable $2 million fundraising total just two days after being nominated by the Democratic Party to replace Graham Platner on the ballot. Jackson, a former Maine Senate president and fifth-generation logger, secured the nomination with overwhelming support from delegates. His campaign has raised over $1 million in two weeks, largely from grassroots donors, even though this sum remains far below incumbent Senator Susan Collins’s $11 million war chest as of June 30. Polls indicate Jackson is currently leading Collins by three points, despite the financial disparity. Jackson has gained strong backing from party leaders and progressive groups, including support from Bernie Sanders and the Democratic Socialists of America. However, Collins remains favored given her ample campaign funds, but recent surveys show a competitive race with Jackson performing well ahead of expectations.
Maine Senate Candidate Troy Jackson vaunted a $2 million fundraising haul two days after the Maine Democratic Party nominated the former state senator to replace Graham Platner on the ballot.
Jackson enters the race with less than 100 days until the general election and will face off against incumbent Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) for a seat Democrats have a keen eye on flipping in the 2026 elections.
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“Every contribution — whether it was five dollars, twenty dollars, or more — is a vote of confidence in the working-class movement we’re building together,” Jackson said in an email announcement.
With considerably less time than other candidates to raise money, Jackson hit the ground running as his campaign had raised $1 million in the two weeks after announcing he planned to replace Platner on the ballot. Platner was forced to suspend his campaign earlier this month due to a rape allegation.
Jackson easily secured the nomination during a state convention, where hundreds of Democratic delegates from Maine’s 16 counties cast their votes to pick the replacement for Platner. With a 566-5 vote from the delegates, Jackson nearly unanimously defeated lesser-known candidates David Costello and pharmaceutical executive Saundra Pelletier. He announced his fundraising haul just two days after officially being named the Democratic Senate candidate.
Of the funds raked in by Jackson, more than 58,000 came from unique donors, which his campaign says represents “the extraordinary grassroots momentum behind the fifth-generation logger and former Maine Senate president’s campaign to defeat Susan Collins.”
Jackson’s fundraising, while quickly gathered, is a fraction of Collins’s war chest, which had $11 million as of June 30.
TROY JACKSON, AN ANTI-CORPORATE MAINE SENATE HOPEFUL, TOUTS ENDORSEMENTS FROM LOBBYISTS
While the campaign financial landscape leans in Collins’s favor, recent polling suggests she’s in for a tough battle against Jackson. A University of New Hampshire poll put Jackson three points ahead of Collins, with only 3% of voters surveyed undecided. Jackson polled at 49%, while Collins lagged at 46%.
Jackson has garnered strong support from party leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who issued a statement arguing that Jackson is “well-positioned” to win the general election, having “harnessed grassroots energy in Maine.” A progressive candidate, Jackson also received support from the state’s chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who previously supported Platner.
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