The Maine Democratic Senate debate turned into a messy, unfocused night that mostly helped Republicans and left voters puzzled about who, if anyone, could mount a serious challenge to Sen. Susan Collins.
The first debate of the Democratic field to replace Graham Platner was a train wreck in plain sight, and the easiest takeaway was painful for Democrats: congratulations on your reelection, Sen. Susan Collins. What the hell did we watch last night? The moderators struggled to keep the candidates on-topic and the candidates mostly struggled to look like credible alternatives.
Rather than land a knockout blow, the Democrats painted themselves into a corner arguing over small issues and sloppy messaging. Calling Collins a Trump lackey or worse never stuck because she has a long record of moderation and is known to Maine voters. Even mainstream outlets acknowledged it was a rough night for the party; when the only serious disagreement seemed to be about daylight saving time, you know the case against Collins didn’t gain traction.
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The debate’s first hour included four leading candidates with something notable in common: They all recently lost Democratic primaries for higher office in the state.
Halting answers. Convoluted responses and stilted deliveries. Former State Senator Troy Jackson, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows and Jordan Wood, a former congressional aide, all struggled to match the forceful message and rhetorical prowess of Mr. Platner, whose rallies electrified voters over the last year.
Dr. Nirav Shah, the fourth candidate onstage — who, like Mr. Jackson and Ms. Bellows, ran and lost in the primary for governor this year — seemed to benefit from his experience as a top public health official at the federal level and in Maine. He was the face of the state’s coronavirus response.
On Thursday, he offered the clearest responses to the moderators’ answers. Even so, the moderators twice clarified his assertions related to Ms. Collins. In one instance, Dr. Shah suggested that she had been a rubber stamp for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth — whose confirmation, a moderator noted, Ms. Collins had in fact opposed.
Dr. Shah also exhibited the most visible anger and emotion about the recent killing of Joan Sebastian Guerrero, who was shot to death by a federal immigration agent on Monday in Biddeford, Maine.
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The candidates took turns assailing Ms. Collins for siding with President Trump on various issues, portraying her as out of touch with Democratic-leaning Maine.
But at times, her voting record seemed to trip up the Democrats.
Discussing Mr. Trump’s decision to order a military operation that captured the Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, Ms. Bellows said, “What Susan Collins has failed to stop is a completely unstable foreign policy.”
Phil Hirschkorn, a moderator, said, “Collins did vote for a war powers resolution to limit what Trump could do in Venezuela in January, right?”
Ms. Bellows replied, “Forgive me.”
“A week ago I was on vacation,” she explained, adding that after her run for governor, she did not expect to pivot to a run for Senate. “When I need to know the facts, I will. I’ll do my homework.”
The quoted reporting laid out what most viewers saw: stilted answers, candidates who had recently lost primaries, and one candidate who stood out only because he had a public health resume. For Republicans, watching a scattershot field try to tag a centrist incumbent with extreme labels was a welcome sight. The lack of a coherent Democratic alternative just made Collins look steadier by comparison.
Beyond the rhetorical flubs, the night exposed organizational problems in the Maine Democratic ranks. Platner’s exit after the allegation from Jenny Racicot changed the landscape and left a scramble that these candidates haven’t resolved. The debate showed that replacing a dynamic, electrifying figure is harder than parachuting a dozen hopefuls onto a stage and asking them to make a case.
Some moments were almost comedic for the wrong reasons, like the baffling line about pork: “I believe they called it pork bellying by cutting out the pork belly from all the bills, sure that would save a lot of money as well…” That kind of rambling phrasing didn’t convince anyone it was a night for serious policy detail. Instead, it underscored how little polish the field brought to a statewide discussion.
There’s another debate scheduled on July 22 at 8 PM, hosted by Maine’s Total Coverage on WMTW8, and the party’s convention where roughly 600 delegates will choose a replacement is set for July 25. Those dates matter because this race is moving fast and Democrats need a candidate who can organize, fundraise, and persuade a broad slice of Maine voters—something the July 16 stage failed to show.
Republicans have a real opening here. A divided, unconvincing opposition helps incumbents like Collins consolidate support, and national GOP groups watching these events saw their case strengthen. Meanwhile, the national map throws up other worries for Democrats: if Maine looks shaky for them, other states like Alaska could be teetering and shift strategic attention away from grooming a new Senate contender.
