Congress
‘Hate to lose the earmarks’: This powerful Republican got trounced despite securing billions
More than $1.5 billion in earmarks couldn’t save Sen. Susan Collins from the “blue wave” Tuesday night, proving outsized influence in Congress isn’t always an antidote for deep voter dissatisfaction with an incumbent party.
The Maine Republican centered her reelection campaign on the argument that, in an institution largely governed by seniority, her nearly 30 years in Washington and control of the powerful Appropriations Committee could deliver more for Maine than her Democratic challenger Troy Jackson. She even peppered voters with county-specific text messages in the final days before polls closed, touting the spoils of a half-decade of earmarks guaranteeing funding for specific home-state projects.
But it wasn’t enough, by a long shot. Collins lost to Jackson by almost 8 percentage points Tuesday night, matching similar Democratic blowouts throughout the country as Republicans were ousted from control of both the House and Senate.
Collins campaign manager Steve Abbott attributed the Republican incumbent’s loss to “bigger forces at play” than local politics, noting that the five-term senator “has been able to do extraordinary things for the state at a level that’s unprecedented in our modern history.”
“People are really unhappy about the direction of the country,” Abbott added in an interview at the Collins watch party as disappointed supporters left the ballroom at the Hilton Garden Inn in Bangor.
Collins is not the only Republican incumbent who touted earmarks in the final weeks before Election Day and lost anyway. Reps. Mike Lawler of New York, Rob Bresnahan of Pennsylvania and Monica De La Cruz of Texas were all defeated Tuesday despite reminding voters of the hundreds of millions of dollars they each secured for specific projects in their districts.
Three others who took that tack — Reps. David Valadao of California, Rob Wittman of Virginia and Tom Barrett of Michigan — are trailing their Democratic challengers as election officials continue to tally votes in those districts.
Maine Rep. Chellie Pingree, a Democrat who has represented Portland and surrounding towns for almost 18 years, said in an interview that there is no doubt voters are “grateful for the amount of money a state’s able to receive” when represented by a top appropriator.
“But I think Mainers were balancing the Republican majority and the cuts to our state already,” Pingree added. “So, yes — we hate to lose the earmarks that go to fire departments and sewer projects and other things. But overall, we’re much better off without a Republican majority.”
She noted almost $1 trillion in reductions to health care spending under the GOP megabill enacted last year, President Donald Trump’s tariffs, staffing losses at federal agencies like USDA and the expiration of subsidies for people who buy health care through the federal marketplace.
Jackson, the Democrat who beat Collins, said on Election Day he should be assigned to the Appropriations Committee to ensure Maine still has a seat at the table.
“I know people will chuckle and stuff like that. I know it’s based on seniority,” Jackson told reporters at a canvassing event in Portland Tuesday, hours before the polls called. “But I think if I beat the Appropriations chair, then I should be on Appropriations. That’s going to be my argument anyways.”
However, a person close to the Collins campaign, granted anonymity to speak candidly, warned that Maine voters “are going to wake up and be kind of shocked” at the influence and funding they have lost by ousting the longtime senator — and that “someone brand new” won’t be able to bring home the same level of federal funding.
“You can go to any town here in Maine,” the person said, “and Sen. Collins has delivered.”