Joe Manchin Backs Susan Collins in Crucial Maine Senate Contest

Former Sen. Joe Manchin has endorsed Republican Sen. Susan Collins in her reelection campaign, lending bipartisan support to the Maine incumbent as she fights to retain her seat in one of the midterm elections’ most consequential Senate races.

Manchin, a former Democrat who registered as an independent during his final year in office, argued Monday that Collins embodies an increasingly rare willingness to pursue workable solutions across party lines.

“If you lose Susan Collins, you’re losing the soul of the Senate,” Manchin said during an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”

The former West Virginia senator praised Collins as a practical lawmaker whom colleagues can approach and pledged to campaign alongside her as she seeks a sixth term.

Collins’ campaign quickly embraced the endorsement, using it to reinforce her longstanding reputation as an independent-minded Republican prepared to negotiate without abandoning her principles.

Manchin’s decision was not entirely unexpected. He had previously spoken favorably about Collins and indicated earlier this year that he would be willing to support her campaign.

The two lawmakers collaborated on several legislative efforts and participated in bipartisan negotiating groups during Manchin’s tenure in Washington.

Collins has cited their work following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot as one example of that cooperation. Both senators helped advance the Electoral Count Reform Act, which revised the procedures governing Congress’ certification of presidential elections.

The measure clarified that the vice president performs a ceremonial role during the certification process and increased the number of lawmakers required to formally challenge a state’s electoral votes.

Collins and Manchin also participated in the Common Sense Coalition, a bipartisan group involved in negotiations during the federal government shutdown disputes of 2013 and 2018.

The endorsement gives Collins the backing of a nationally recognized former Democratic senator as she works to distinguish herself from both Washington’s progressive establishment and rigid party politics.

Collins has frequently separated herself from President Donald Trump and other Republicans on major issues. Most notably, she was one of seven GOP senators who voted to convict Trump during his second impeachment trial following the Jan. 6 events.

Despite that record of independence, Democrats are attempting to portray Collins as inseparable from the national Republican agenda. She will face former Maine Senate President Troy Jackson in November’s general election.

Jackson, a former logger from Allagash, captured the Democratic nomination and is now trying to prevent Collins from securing another six-year term.

National political organizations are closely monitoring Maine because it represents one of Democrats’ relatively few opportunities to seize a Republican-held Senate seat. The outcome could help determine control of the chamber during the final two years of President Trump’s second term.

Collins has made bipartisanship a defining element of her political brand, maintaining that Maine benefits from a senator capable of working with both parties while exercising independent judgment.

Jackson and his Democratic allies contend that Collins should instead be judged by the occasions when she supported Republican leadership and the Trump administration’s priorities.

Manchin’s intervention allows Collins to sharpen her core campaign argument: that experience, personal relationships and a willingness to negotiate still matter in a deeply divided Senate.

Manchin represented West Virginia from 2010 until January 2025. He developed a national reputation for challenging Democratic leaders, particularly when their agenda conflicted with his state’s interests or threatened to move the country further left.

He departed the Democratic Party in 2024, registered as an independent and retired from the Senate at the conclusion of his term.

His endorsement of Collins went beyond an ordinary statement of political support. Manchin portrayed her reelection as important to preserving the Senate’s institutional character and capacity for serious negotiation.

Addressing complaints that Collins is not always outspoken enough, Manchin argued that critics underestimate the work she performs away from television cameras.

“Susan is always in there, always in the trenches,” he said, CNN reported.

Collins will now enter the final stretch of the campaign with Manchin offering more than his name: He has promised to join her personally on the campaign trail.