Maine Democrats pick Troy Jackson as their Senate nominee at an unusual party convention

By Patrick Svitek, Jeff Zeleny, CNN

Bangor, Maine (CNN) — Maine Democrats picked Troy Jackson as their new Senate nominee on Saturday, the culmination of a brief and unusual contest that sets the stage for a 101-day sprint to try and defeat Republican Sen. Susan Collins in one of the country’s most important Senate races.

In a nearly unanimous vote, 566 delegates at a party convention in Bangor picked Jackson, the former state Senate president, as the nominee to replace Graham Platner after he dropped out earlier this month following an allegation of rape. Jackson faced little opposition at the convention after filling most delegate slots at county meetings with his supporters and forcing his most serious opponents to drop out.

After his overwhelming nomination, Jackson strode onto the stage to enthusiastic applause and booming strains of “Northern Attitude” by Noah Kahan, who grew up in nearby Vermont. In his acceptance speech, he zeroed in on a doubled-edged challenge: uniting Democrats and defeating Collins.

“There is a place in this campaign for all of you. There is work for you in this movement. And I will spend every day now through November earning that trust, because today we turn the page,” Jackson said. “Today, this becomes a general election campaign and today we begin the work of defeating Susan Collins in November.”

Democratic leaders in Washington, who stayed neutral in the nominating contest after a tense relationship with Platner, were quick to voice support for Jackson. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, head of the Senate Democratic campaign arm, dispatched aides to Maine to watch the process unfold and said in a statement that Jackson “has harnessed the grassroots energy in Maine and is well-positioned to defeat” Collins.

Republicans, meanwhile, made clear they plan to tie Jackson to Platner, who ended his campaign after an allegation of rape that he denied. Jackson was among those who called on Platner to drop out, but he previously aligned himself closely with the candidate.

Jackson pitched himself Saturday as a progressive working-class champion who could make the case that Collins has not stood up enough to President Donald Trump on behalf of Mainers. But he has work cut out for him against the incumbent, who has had a months-long head start in the race and proven to be a political survivor before.

Collins, who leads the Senate Appropriations Committee, has an extraordinary fundraising advantage. Her ads have played in heavy rotation for months, giving her a remarkable head start in the three-month sprint to November.

But during a fundraising event in Falmouth on Friday evening, Collins signaled to supporters that she is taking the race seriously. She has privately conceded that it could be her toughest campaign yet, given the political headwinds facing Republicans.

On Saturday, her campaign characterized Jackson’s nomination “an appointment” by a small group of Democratic voters while noting his unsuccessful bid for governor earlier this year.

“Our campaign will continue to run on Senator Collins’ bipartisan record of delivering results for Maine and America, which will stand in stark contrast to Troy’s low-energy campaign and his partisan record of driving up costs, hurting our schools, and making life less affordable for families across the state,” campaign spokesperson Shawn Roderick said in a statement. “Just one month ago, Troy came in third in the Democratic primary for Governor. Now he will run for Senate as the third choice of his party insiders.”

Maine Democratic Party chairman Charles Dingman implored party activists to “buckle down for the next 100 days together.”

“Please carry with you the fantastic energy in this room and the imagination that brought us all here together,” he said, speaking as delegates applauded and waved “Retire Susan” signs in the air, a poignant nod to a key challenge for the party – making the race a referendum on Collins.

Jackson’s vision

Organizers of the party convention had envisioned a robust field of candidates vying to win a majority of the 601 delegates, 500 elected at the county level and 101 from the Democratic State Committee. Instead, Jackson entered the convention with only one opponent left: Saundra Pelletier, a CEO of a biopharmaceutical company who is a political unknown.

As a result, the nomination process on Saturday played out in an anticlimactic fashion, absent the drama that has loomed large over the Maine Democratic Party for weeks amid the scandal enveloping Platner. Jackson’s speech finished shortly before noon and delegates headed toward the doors – less than three hours after the convention began.

“We can’t allow six more years of the same thing,” Jackson said. “Let’s get to work winning this race.”

Maurie Hill, an alternate delegate to the special convention, said she believes dissatisfaction with Collins will help galvanize the party behind Jackson regardless of their initial preferences in the Senate contest.

“Our bottom line is making sure that Susan Collins doesn’t go back to the Senate,” Hill said, stopping for a moment to talk during a break in the proceedings. “More recently, I’m very distressed by her positions.”

Videos about Collins’ voting record and her 30 years in the Senate played on a loop on large screens at the convention, including one that showcased her long-ago pledge to serve no more than two terms. She is seeking her sixth – an about-face that she has defended because of how her Senate seniority benefits Maine.

“I was an infant when Susan Collins came into office,” said Elizabeth Ahlgren, a delegate from York, who noted that Collins and Jackson are both from Aroostook County in northern Maine, which could be an attribute for Democrats.

“It’s a region where she thinks she can always count on a base of support,” Ahlgren said. “Now we have someone who’s actually going to make her fight for them and earn those votes.”

While a far less polished orator than Platner, Jackson spoke with an air of authenticity about the challenges facing working Mainers.

“Susan Collins keeps telling us, `Everything is just fine.’ They act like we’re idiots. We know it isn’t,” Jackson said. “We all have eyes. We can see what’s happening. We can see our paychecks and the bills that we have. We know we are getting screwed and we also know who’s to blame and I’m running to change that.”

Jackson’s challenges

Fundraising will be one of Jackson’s most urgent priorities.

Collins’ campaign entered July with over $11 million cash on hand, while Jackson is effectively starting from scratch. His campaign has said he raised at least $1 million since launching his bid to replace Platner on the ballot.

Republicans are set to attack Jackson over his previous closeness to Platner and reports that have alleged angry outbursts with colleagues when he was a state lawmaker. Those reports were featured prominently in the debut ad against Jackson from the Senate Leaderhsip Fund, the top GOP super PAC in Senate races.

Looking to blunt questions about his temperament, particularly around women, Jackson’s campaign selected former state Rep. Charlotte Warren to nominate him at the convention. She acknowledged they have not always agreed and are “very passionate people.”

“Yes, sometimes we fought one another,” Warren said to the crowd of convention delegates. “But here is what I’ve learned about Troy in these moments: He listens, he works through disagreements, and when the fight is over, he gets back to work for what he believes in, with the people he believes in.”

Pelletier did not directly criticize Jackson in a speech before the vote, but she said Maine Democrats need “a leader that’s measured, that’s calm, that knows how to behave under serious pressure.”

Jackson will also have to grapple with how much he embraced Platner earlier in the election cycle. He campaigned alongside him multiple times, stood by him through earlier scandals and was Platner’s top choice in the primary for governor.

Jackson did not mention Platner on Saturday but appealed to the Democrats that he energized in his campaign.

“I know many of you poured your hearts into building this movement way before I ever entered this race,” Jackson said in a speech before the vote. “The hope that you built never belonged to any one campaign.”

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