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PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Republican Sen. Susan Collins announced her reelection bid Tuesday, betting that she tin clasp onto her coveted Maine spot contempt a renewed Democratic effort to oust her successful a contention that could find power of the U.S. Senate.
The run volition trial Collins' governmental endurance skills. The 73-year-old has won 5 presumption by casting herself arsenic a reflection of Maine's autarkic spirit, occasionally clashing with President Donald Trump portion besides mostly supporting his agenda.
“I person ever worked crossed the aisle to lick problems. Maine needs experienced, dependable enactment that focuses connected getting things done," Collins said successful a Tuesday statement.
As she seeks a sixth term, Collins faces outrage implicit migration enforcement tactics that could go a governmental liability for Republican candidates crossed the country. A caller cognition successful Maine led to hundreds of arrests but besides disapproval that radical were being rounded up adjacent if they didn't person transgression records.
Collins has taken recognition for stopping the surge of national agents successful Maine aft she spoke straight with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
However, Democrats accused Collins of not going acold enough, pointing to her refusal to telephone for Noem's ouster and her ballot successful favour of a bipartisan Homeland Security backing bill. The enactment needs to nett 4 seats to retake the Senate majority, and they are aiming to bash that successful Maine, North Carolina, Alaska and Ohio.
Gov. Janet Mills and oyster husbandman Graham Platner are among Collins' apical Democratic challengers. While galore constitution Democrats and influential left-leaning groups person backed Mills, Platner has gained traction with his anti-establishment representation and economical equality message. He's campaigned aggressively portion facing revelations of problematic societal media posts and having to screen up a tattoo resembling a Nazi symbol.
Mills has accused Collins of governing “without immoderate courage” soon aft the Republican voted successful favour of backing the DHS and respective different agencies successful January. She repeated that complaint Tuesday.
“Seniority without a backbone is conscionable tenure, and aft decades successful Washington, Senator Collins has failed to show the enactment required successful this unsafe infinitesimal successful history," she said successful a statement.
Platner has demanded that Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which is portion of DHS, beryllium dismantled and said helium did not judge Collins oregon the Trump administration's committedness to permission Maine. He said Tuesday successful a station connected the societal level X that Collins should person kept her committedness to service conscionable 2 Senate terms.
“That’s conscionable 1 of a 100 reasons she doesn’t merit a sixth term,” helium wrote.
Platner precocious outraised some Mills and Collins, according to the latest national filings. The first-time campaigner collected astir $4.6 million, portion Mills raised $2.7 million. Collins, who had not yet officially launched her run during the filing period, had much than $8 cardinal successful currency connected manus astatine the extremity of 2025.
Collins, who has said she didn’t ballot for Trump successful 2016, voted to convict the president aft his 2021 impeachment implicit his relation successful the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. After Collins joined a fistful of Republican colleagues successful backing a failed effort to bounds the president's quality to unilaterally usage unit successful Venezuela, Trump said connected societal media that they “should ne'er beryllium elected to bureau again.”
Collins has besides broadly backed Trump's docket and his nominees, adjacent though she voted against his 2025 taxation and spending bill.
Notably, Collins voted to corroborate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. arsenic Trump’s prime to beryllium caput of Health and Human Services. Kennedy has since espoused anti-vaccine argumentation and ousted nationalist wellness officials astatine the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
She has faced down pugnacious challenges before. Democrat Sara Gideon raised $69 cardinal successful 2020, outspending Collins successful a bid to assistance instrumentality backmost the Senate during a statesmanlike predetermination twelvemonth erstwhile the Democrats won the apical of the ticket. Collins defeated Gideon by much than 8 points.
Collins has remained successful bureau contempt Maine becoming progressively blue. The proportionality of registered Democrats has accrued since her past reelection campaign, erstwhile “unenrolled” autarkic voters outnumbered Democrats successful 2019 but present way them successful 2026. Republicans person trailed some groups for years.
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This communicative was archetypal published connected Feb. 10, 2026. It was updated connected Feb. 11, 2026 to close that Collins voted against the 2025 taxation and spending bill, not for it.
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Kruesi reported from Providence, Rhode Island.
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.
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