Maine Senate candidate Troy Jackson is seeking to distance himself from the far-left label, rejecting the socialist description despite previously receiving endorsements from political streamer Hasan Piker and the Maine chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America.
“I don’t really consider myself anything. I’m upset a lot at the Democratic Party. What I know is I fight for working-class people,” Jackson told CNN’s Manu Raju when asked whether he considers himself a socialist.
Jackson quickly became the grassroots movement’s preferred choice to replace scandal-plagued oyster farmer Graham Platner, who abandoned his campaign after facing a rape allegation that he denied.
Progressive activists concluded that Jackson, who served as president of the Maine Senate from 2018 to 2024, held views similar to Platner’s. The two men had also campaigned together repeatedly.
“[I]f the dem establishment think [sic] that they can risk the senate majority by not replacing platner with an acceptable substitute – we will be risking a loss to susan collins,” Piker wrote on X as Democrats scrambled to find Platner’s replacement. “[T]roy jackson is him!”
Piker, who drew widespread criticism after saying in 2019 that “America deserved 9/11,” has become a political liability for Democrats. He later expressed regret over the remark, saying it had handed his conservative opponents ammunition.
Piker’s association with Dr. Abdul El-Sayed has complicated Democrats’ efforts to retain the Michigan Senate seat and triggered a barrage of Republican attacks. The controversy has prompted other Democrats to keep their distance.
“No, I honestly had never. I actually didn’t know a lot about him either,” Jackson said earlier this month on Crooked Media’s “What a Day” podcast when asked about Piker.
During his campaign for governor, Jackson received the endorsement of the Maine DSA, an affiliation he highlighted proudly on social media in May.
“To the loggers, farmers, teachers, truck drivers, nurses, postal workers, shipbuilders, childcare providers, and everyone else who makes this state run while getting run down in the process: let’s take back what’s ours,” he wrote on X at the time.
Jackson ultimately placed third in the Maine Democratic gubernatorial primary. His allies now emphasize that the Maine DSA has not endorsed a candidate in the Senate race.
The DSA’s national organization has effectively called for abolishing the executive branch and the Senate, while also making the Supreme Court subordinate to Congress.
“No,” Jackson said on MS NOW’s “Morning Joe” when asked whether he supports the national DSA platform. “But, I mean, what I do support is a government that works for everyday people.”
Jackson’s appeal among progressive grassroots activists was partly rooted in his role leading Sen. Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign operation in Maine.
Sanders later returned the favor, endorsing Jackson during his campaign for governor and again in the Senate contest.
Jackson holds a 1.8 percentage-point advantage over incumbent Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, according to the latest RealClearPolitics polling average. Collins, however, has a record of significantly outperforming polling expectations.
