GOP Moderate Susan Collins Facing Difficult Primary Challenge
Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, billed as a Republican “moderate” who often goes against President Donald Trump and her party’s more conservative majority, is facing what could be her most difficult reelection bid as she eyes a sixth term.
According to a local news report, Collins is going to face at least three primary challengers – Carmen Calabrese of Kennebunkport and Daniel Smeriglio of Frenchville, both of whom have filed as Republicans, and Phillip Rench of Waterboro, who sits on the board for the Maine Space Corporation and owns Ossipee Hill Farm and Observatory, who filed as an Independent.
Other candidates could still emerge. And as Democrats seek to make gains in the House and Senate next year, her seat is one that the opposition party will be targeting, the Maine Morning Star reported, adding:
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Two Democrats are also vying for Maine’s U.S. Senate seat so far.
Jordan Wood of Bristol, originally from Lewiston, spent about a decade working in politics in Washington, D.C., including as chief of staff to former Democratic U.S. Rep. Katie Porter of California.
Natasha Alcala of Madawaska is currently a fashion designer who moved to Maine from California a little over four years ago. She has degrees in international relations and criminal justice and is a U.S. Navy veteran. Alcala previously filed to run against U.S. Sen. Angus King in 2024 but withdrew before the primary.
King caucuses with Democrats in the Senate, but he is officially listed as an Independent.
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In the last election cycle, Collins campaigned to Mainers by highlighting her ability to secure federal funding for the state through her anticipated rise to chair one of the Senate’s most influential committees—a position she now holds and cited when explaining why she believes she remains the best choice to represent Maine, the outlet reported.
“By climbing that ladder in the last three years I have been able to secure more than a billion dollars for hundreds of projects in communities across our state,” Collins said. “That would not have happened without the seniority that I have.”
Collins emphasized the earmarks she secured for investments across all 16 of Maine’s counties, as well as legislation with broader impacts for Mainers. Notably, she co-authored the Social Security Fairness Act, which was signed into law earlier this year under former President Joe Biden and restored full benefits for millions of public sector workers.
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For his part, Calabrese acknowledged that Collins’ role as a top appropriator in the upper chamber is a position of strength. “You can’t argue with that. But I look at it as well, I thank you for bringing it, but you’re also spending my money. It’s my tax dollars,” he told the Maine outlet, adding that the tax dollars being spent would go farther if she sided more often with Trump.
“If you agree more with some of the stances that he has, maybe you’ll do better,” he said.
Rench, meanwhile, doesn’t see Collins’ appropriate role as a positive.
“What we need to do as a state is become less dependent on federal dollars,” he told the Maine Morning Star.
Rench said he plans to strengthen Maine’s economic foundation for families by tackling what he describes as the state’s “brain drain.” He aims to reform the education system to offer both college and trade school pathways. Having left Maine after college to work in the space industry before returning, Rench said he understands why young people leave and wants to reverse that trend.
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He also proposes revitalizing key industries by establishing a federal reserve of dimensional lumber, expanding Maine’s food production and processing capacity to serve the nation, and converting Maine into a leader in the space sector.
