Collins Claims Schumer-Backed Ads Rely on Lies in Maine Race
The senator points to an Epstein-related commercial she says matches spots run against other Republican rivals as polls show her tied with Troy Jackson.
By Amina Howard ·
Voters in Maine face a final stretch of television commercials that Sen. Susan Collins argues contain fabricated claims. With the election scheduled for Tuesday, the two-time senator accused the Democratic Party of flooding the airwaves with falsehoods as her campaign enters its last 48 hours.
Collins stated in a Sunday interview with Fox News that she has never encountered a contest featuring such a high volume of deceptive messaging. She identified a specific commercial referencing Jeffrey Epstein as a prime example of what she called an outrageous and completely false narrative.
The senator linked these advertisements to a coordinated strategy orchestrated by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. She noted that two colleagues facing their own tight races aired nearly identical spots, suggesting a standardized approach to attacking Republican incumbents.
Collins described the effort as an attempt to nationalize the state contest by shifting attention away from local priorities toward partisan conflicts. She positioned herself as a centrist alternative, arguing that the current Senate lacks enough members willing to cross party lines to pass legislation.
Regarding her voting record, Collins challenged the statistic that she aligns with President Donald Trump on 95 percent of votes. She said that figure is based on a sample representing only 30 percent of the total, whereas a review of 90 percent of the votes shows a 72 percent alignment rate. She added that she voted against the president's policies on 138 occasions.
The race remains statistically even. The latest Fox News poll places Collins and her Democratic opponent, Troy Jackson, in a dead heat at 49 percent each. Jackson previously told the network he believes he has a strong chance to win the seat.
Despite the tight numbers, Collins expressed high confidence in her prospects. She cited positive feedback from community visits across the state as a primary driver of her optimism for the final days of the campaign.
