Maine Senate Race in Dead Heat, Susan Collins Trails by Two

Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins is trailing her opponent in a new poll—but by an encouragingly slim margin. Democrats need to net four additional seats in order to gain control of the Senate.

On Monday, the New York Times released a poll alongside the Portland Press Herald and Siena in which Democrat Senate nominee Graham Platner leads Collins 49% to 47% among likely voters.

This lead is well within the survey’s 4.8 percent margin of error. The poll was conducted June 19 to 26.

It bears noting that these numbers are some of the best Collins has had in years.

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In her 2020 campaign, she trailed her Democrat opponent in every single public poll, and by double digits in some polls. She ultimately won the race by over eight points.

The numbers come after Platner has dealt with controversy over resurfaced online comments and a tattoo he had for years that resembles a Nazi-linked symbol.

Most recently, The New York Times interviewed multiple former girlfriends of Platner, turning up allegations of physical roughness and eccentric behavior, although some spoke of him positively.

Platner, who is endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is attempting to advance a hard-left platform in a state that has elected a Republican senator five times in a row.

Platner supports “Medicare for all,” the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and has accused Israel of committing “genocide.”

The survey also went into more granular detail on what Maine voters think of the character and record of the two candidates.

mong likely voters, 47% agreed Platner “is too extreme,” and 34% said the same of Collins.

Meanwhile, 44% agreed Platner “has good character,” and 66% said the same of Collins.

Similarly, 45% of voters said Platner has “the right kind of moral values,” with 61% saying so of Collins.

A majority of likely voters suggested Platner’s controversies affect their likelihood to support him, with 28% saying they “cannot support” him as a result of them and 24% “questioning support.”

But a plurality of 39% said the controversies have “no impact.”

Still, there are bright spots for Platner in the survey.

Among likely voters, 50% say Platner would do a better job at “being an independent voice” compared to 43% who said the same of Collins.

Similarly, 50% say Platner would do a better job at “doing what’s best for ordinary Mainers,” compared to 46% who said so of Collins.

However, when it comes to “bringing money and resources to Maine,” just 34% said Platner would do a better job, and 61% said Collins would do better.

Collins wields influence as the chair of the Senate appropriations committee, which crafts agreements on annual funding bills.

LifeNews Note: George Caldwell is a journalism fellow at The Daily Signal, where this column originally appeared.