{"id":2631079,"date":"2026-07-17T09:30:01","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T13:30:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nirav-shah-and-troy-jackson-solidify-status-as-top-contenders-in-maine\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T09:32:38","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T13:32:38","slug":"nirav-shah-and-troy-jackson-solidify-status-as-top-contenders-in-maine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nirav-shah-and-troy-jackson-solidify-status-as-top-contenders-in-maine\/","title":{"rendered":"Nirav Shah and Troy Jackson solidify status as top contenders in Maine"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fnirav-shah-and-troy-jackson-solidify-status-as-top-contenders-in-maine%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2631079&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Former Maine public health official Nirav Shah and ex-Maine state senator Troy Jackson emerged as the leading contenders in the state&#8217;s Senate race during their first debate following the withdrawal of Democratic candidate Graham Platner. Both candidates criticized Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after a recent police shooting in Biddeford,with Shah calling for it&#8217;s abolition and Jackson describing it as a rogue agency. Other participants,including Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows and newcomer Jordan Webb,discussed various issues such as voting rights,daylight saving time,gender identity,and cultural issues,but their responses were less definitive. Webb, identifying as a transgender woman, emphasized her desire for respect and safety, notably regarding bathroom use. Meanwhile, some candidates acknowledged Platner&#8217;s influence and maintained neutrality about him to avoid alienating his supporters. The Maine Democratic primary features multiple candidates vying for the nomination to challenge Senator Susan Collins, with the final selection scheduled shortly before the November election.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Former public health official Nirav Shah and former Maine state Sen. Troy Jackson solidified their status as the top two contenders in the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/senate\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"8765\">Senate<\/a> race for <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/maine\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"193\">Maine<\/a> during their first debate since former Democratic nominee <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/graham-platner\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"22643\">Graham Platner<\/a> dropped out of the race last week.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Both frontrunners took the opportunity on the debate stage Thursday night to blast <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/ice\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/ice\/\">Immigration and Customs Enforcement<\/a> after an officer fatally shot a Colombian national earlier this week in Biddeford, Maine.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4652593\/graham-platner-socialists-2026-midterms\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>The Platner effect: Second thoughts about socialists<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/4652429\/doj-marine-william-upham-trump-threat\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>DOJ charges Florida House candidate who called for \u2018Antichrist\u2019 Trump\u2019s death<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4652539\/pat-ryan-pledges-refund-aipac-money-could-cost-him-790k\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>New York Democrat Pat Ryan pledges to refund AIPAC money. It could cost him $790,000<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shah reiterated his call to <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077898942340116714\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077898942340116714\">abolish ICE<\/a>, saying \u201cthat must be our goal.\u201d Jackson has called for the same thing. In his view, ICE is not a legitimate law enforcement agency.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI support law enforcement, but ICE is not law enforcement,\u201d Jackson <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077898693072638150\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077898693072638150\">said<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s a rogue agency that goes around doing things that they\u2019re being told to [do] on high.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Other candidates commented on ICE, but their comments weren\u2019t as notable. In fact, the remaining candidates on the debate stage floundered in their answers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In response to a question about a specific area of oversight she would want to focus on at a future Senate hearing if she were elected, Maine Secretary of State <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/NRSC\/status\/2077907719445487633\">Shenna Bellows said<\/a> she has \u201cmany ideas on this one.\u201d When asked to give an example, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/daveweigel\/status\/2077923488917049802\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/daveweigel\/status\/2077923488917049802\">she answered<\/a>, \u201cWell, I\u2019d like to have a lot of hearings. But I will start with voting rights.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On the topic of <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/daylight-saving-time\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"23152\">daylight saving time<\/a>, which has been in the news after the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/house\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"11272\">House<\/a> passed a bill to make it permanent, Bellows did not give a definitive answer on her position.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI think there are reasons for and against,\u201d <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077912556010623254\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077912556010623254\">Bellows said<\/a>, followed by one of the two moderators saying she doesn\u2019t have \u201ca lot of conviction\u201d in her answer. She added, \u201cI love it when it gets light in the morning and gets dark at 8 o\u2019clock or 9 o\u2019clock. That\u2019s my favorite.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bellows, Jackson, Shah, and former Capitol Hill staffer Jordan Wood participated in the first debate round. The second round saw less well-known candidates, including Maine Beer Company founder Dan Kleban and transgender activist Ashley Webb.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Webb gave an unclear response during the debate of the night when a moderator posed a question about qualifications.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI ran for office several times, didn\u2019t win,\u201d <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077912498087289214\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077912498087289214\">Webb replied<\/a>. \u201cI\u2019m a songwriter, and I write my own books. And then I suppose my transparency \u2014 I wouldn\u2019t lie to people, and I wouldn\u2019t deceive the people like we\u2019re being deceived right now.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Webb, a biological male who identifies as a woman, touched on the debate over gender identity.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-25\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-4\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWith the trans community, we\u2019re being dehumanized. They say that we want to hurt people. I don\u2019t want to hurt anybody. I just want to use the bathroom,\u201d <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077913037005099366\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077913037005099366\">Webb said<\/a>. \u201cIf they want me to use the men\u2019s room, I will, but I don\u2019t want to be assaulted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a revealing moment, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077917416424693892\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077917416424693892\">Kleban admitted<\/a> the Democratic Party\u2019s reputation \u201cis in the toilet\u201d because \u201cwe\u2019ve lost focus of being the party about kitchen-table issues\u201d and instead focus on cultural issues.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Many of the Senate candidates mentioned Platner during the debate, but they stayed away from criticizing him for fear of isolating his supporters.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-5\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-5\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-26\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-5\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">David Costello, who finished third in the Democratic primary last month, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077919333414510875\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RNCResearch\/status\/2077919333414510875\">noted<\/a> Platner once voted for him in 2024. At the time, Costello was running for the Senate.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4650482\/maine-democrats-replace-platner-senate-race\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4650482\/maine-democrats-replace-platner-senate-race\/\">NO CLEAR FRONT-RUNNER EMERGES AS MAINE DEMOCRATS RACE TO REPLACE PLATNER<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A dozen Maine Democrats are running for the state party\u2019s nomination to challenge incumbent Sen. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/susan-collins\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"1302\">Susan Collins<\/a> (R-ME) in November.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">CNN and <em>Bangor Daily News<\/em> will host the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com\/2026\/07\/16\/cnn-to-host-maine-democratic-senate-debate\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com\/2026\/07\/16\/cnn-to-host-maine-democratic-senate-debate\/\">next debate<\/a> in the race on July 23, two days before the Maine Democratic Party\u2019s Senate nominating convention. A new nominee must be selected by 5 p.m. on July 27 to appear on the ballot against Collins.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Shah and Jackson lead Maine Senate race after first debate<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2159,"featured_media":2631080,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/AP26197832361767.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[50402,45119,82843,82844,82490],"class_list":["post-2631079","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-leadership-2","tag-maine-politics","tag-nirav-shah","tag-top-contenders","tag-troy-jackson"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/AP26197832361767.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2631079","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2159"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2631079"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2631079\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2631082,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2631079\/revisions\/2631082"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2631080"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2631079"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2631079"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2631079"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}