Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) on Friday said Maine Democratic Senate candidate Troy Jackson seems to have issues managing his temper after reports of a decades-old arrest resurfaced.
Speaking to reporters before heading out on a campaign bus tour in Maine, Collins was asked about recent reports of a 1988 incident in which Jackson faced misdemeanor charges for punching an unnamed man.
“He’s the one who needs to respond to those reports,” Collins said. “I’m not going to comment on them, but I will say that based on widespread reporting, it appears that he struggles to control his temper.”
Jackson was 19 at the time of the arrest, and police reports obtained by local news outlets say he also pushed his longtime partner, Lana Pelletier, during the incident. Jackson has responded to the resurfaced police report, claiming he has taken responsibility for his actions and has never been violent with his partner.
“Nearly forty years ago, when I was 19 years old, I got into a fight with another man. I took responsibility for it then, and I take responsibility for it now,” he said in a statement to The Hill. “But let me be clear: I have never been violent with my partner Lana, or any other woman.”
Pelletier also put out a statement in which she claimed not to remember the police report, praising Jackson as a “caring partner and father.”
Jackson was selected by the Maine Democratic Party to replace embattled former Democratic candidate Graham Platner, who was plagued by scandals that eventually crescendoed with sexual assault allegations, leading to his departure from the race.
MAINE DEMOCRATS BRACE FOR MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT TROY JACKSON AFTER RUSHED CORONATION
The U.S. Senate hopeful previously served as president of the Maine Senate, and while serving in that role, Jackson allegedly had a heated meeting with a female colleague that resulted in him throwing a water bottle. Fact checks of the incident have found that Jackson was not aiming for his fellow lawmaker when he threw the bottle out of anger, but the incident has still subjected the candidate to GOP attacks.
Maine’s race to elect its next senator has emerged as one of the marquee races of the 2026 midterm cycle, as Democrats seek to unseat Collins. Recent polling shows Jackson with a slight edge over Collins, sitting at 48% support, while the five-term incumbent polled at 47%.