Long-Serving ‘RINO’ Senator Underwater In Re-Election Poll
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), long considered one of the Senate’s most moderate Republicans, is feeling the political pressure back home as she gears up for a 2026 reelection fight.
A new Morning Consult survey shows Collins’ job approval sinking to the lowest point of her career. Just 38% of Mainers approve of her performance, while 54% disapprove—her highest disapproval since the outlet began tracking senators eight years ago.
The numbers mark a steep decline from late 2024, when Collins was still underwater but faring noticeably better with 47% approval and 44% disapproval.
Her office pushed back on the narrative of political decline, pointing to a Pan Atlantic Research poll from May showing a more favorable 49–45 margin. Still, the overall trajectory suggests the senator’s independent streak has cost her goodwill among Republican voters—and potentially opened the door for challengers.
Collins, who chairs the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, confirmed this week that she intends to seek reelection. She has already amassed $6 million for her campaign and retains $5 million in cash on hand, according to FEC filings. A super PAC backing her has also raised $5.6 million in the first half of the year, while the National Republican Senatorial Committee has launched early ads to bolster her standing.
Breaks With Trump Fuel Backlash
Much of Collins’ recent decline stems from her repeated opposition to President Donald Trump on cornerstone legislation. Most notably, she was one of just three Republicans to vote against Trump’s “one big, beautiful” bill signed into law on July 4.
In the run-up to that vote, Collins proposed an amendment raising taxes on America’s ultra-wealthy—singling out individuals making $25 million or more and couples with income above $50 million—to funnel money into Maine’s struggling rural hospitals.
She justified her opposition by citing concerns over Medicaid cuts, writing on X that the bill’s provisions could harm “low-income families and rural health care providers like our hospitals and nursing homes.” Collins claimed Maine could lose nearly $6 billion in Medicaid funding over the next decade.
While she acknowledged support for adding work requirements for able-bodied adults, her public defense of the welfare program drew fire from conservatives who argue she is propping up unsustainable entitlement spending rather than embracing the President’s broader agenda of fiscal reform.
GOP Still Rallies Around Collins—for Now
Despite the friction, state party leadership has lined up behind Collins. Jason Savage, executive director of the Maine GOP, told the Daily Caller News Foundation that she has been doing a “tremendous job,” emphasizing her statewide influence.
“She’s impacted every community in the state,” Savage said, expressing confidence that voters will recognize her record in 2026.
For now, Collins faces no significant primary challenger. But with her approval slipping, her breaks with Trump still fresh, and Democrats eyeing the seat, Maine’s senior senator enters the next election cycle in perhaps her most vulnerable position yet.