Maine Senate Race Tightens: Jackson Ad Ties Collins to Trump; Pro-Collins Ad Targets Jackson Over Cell Tower
Photo: New York PostLess than two weeks before Election Day, Democrat Troy Jackson's campaign released a 30-second ad in Maine's Senate race arguing that a win for Republican Sen. Susan Collins would give President Donald Trump a Senate majority, while a separate new ad features a firefighter criticizing Jackson over a cellphone tower. Jackson, a onetime logger and former Maine Senate president, has a narrow lead in polling averages, and most forecasters call the race a toss-up. Nate Silver's model gives him about a 70% chance of winning. A Washington Post survey earlier this month had Jackson ahead 50% to 46%, with voters preferring Democratic Senate control 55% to 42%. In the other ad, Ronnie Pelletier of Jackson's hometown, Allagash, who said Jackson officiated his pandemic-era wedding, backs Collins. He said Jackson showed tower-company representatives around town and the tower was built on a family member's property. Rural towers can pay $500 to $1,000 a month, per an industry site, and it is unclear what Jackson's in-laws earn. Robert Parsloe, owner of Wireless Partners, LLC, which installed the tower, disputed the insinuation and called the placement a coincidence.
Right-leaning New York Post leads with the Pelletier allegation, framing it as a startling claim from a man whose wedding Jackson officiated. It quotes Pelletier at length, adds the rent estimate, and includes Parsloe's rebuttal. It does not mention Jackson's polling lead or the Senate-control argument. Left-leaning HuffPost leads with Jackson's closing ad, quoting its line that Collins's return gives Trump control. It focuses on polling, forecasts and the stakes of Senate control, and says nothing of the tower claim. The sides agree Jackson is a prominent Democratic challenger in a close race; they differ in whose ad and which attack they highlight. Alternative or independent outlets had not reported this story at the time of writing, while left-leaning and right-leaning outlets had.
How the sides differ Right sources stress a former friend's cell tower allegation against Jackson; left sources stress Jackson's Senate-control ad and polling lead; alternative sources have not covered it.
Headline, comparison and summary written by AI from the articles below. AI can make mistakes, so check the original articles before relying on a detail.
HuffPost leads with Jackson's closing ad linking Collins to Trump, citing the ad's narrators, polling averages, Nate Silver's forecast and a Washington Post survey.
Not covering this story. None of the alternative or independent outlets Crosswire tracks has reported it yet. What one side leaves out can be as telling as what the others report.
The New York Post leads with Ronnie Pelletier's ad alleging Jackson steered a cell tower to in-laws' land, quoting Pelletier and including the tower owner's denial.