Troy Jackson, former Maine Senate president, officially clinched the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate on Saturday during a special nominating convention in Bangor. The 58-year-old logger received overwhelming support from delegates, with voting results showing 566-5 in his favor. Jackson replaces Graham Platner, the original Democratic nominee who withdrew earlier this month following allegations of sexual abuse.
Jackson emerged as the presumptive nominee earlier in the week when the vast majority of Maine’s 601 delegates pledged their support, prompting all but one of his opponents to withdraw from the race before the convention. He will now face incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins in the general election, a race that has been characterized as a toss-up by political observers.
Sources note that Jackson’s path to the nomination was relatively smooth given the consolidated support among delegates, though some reports mention that fresh scrutiny has surrounded the race as it resets with new leadership on the Democratic side.
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