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PORTLAND, Maine (AP) – Democrats vowed last year to make Republican Sen. Susan Collins, Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. Republicans declared they would have her back. Neither has forgotten its promises.
Money is pouring into Maine's high-profile Senate race, threatening to upend the state's reputation for genteel politics and giving way to a new era of partisanship.
Observers predict the race will be set a record spending in the state, with tens of millions of dollars going into the state, even though Collins has yet to announce that it's seeking reelection.
Democrats plan to spend at least $ 1.2 million on ads per month. A newly formed GOP group, meanwhile, has $ 800,000 already in the bank, thanks to a small group of wealthy financiers. They've highlighted Collins' bipartisan credentials while calling her "strong voice to the concerns of women across Maine and the nation."
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But it's unclear how Maine voters will respond to its contentious vote for Kavanaugh or to the flood of outside money.
The race is one of a handful of opportunities for Democracy in the Senate in the pursuit of seizing control of the chamber from the GOP.
Collins, who was first elected in 1996, has practiced a measured, moderate brand of politics that is aligned with the ethos of a state where most voters do not identify with one party. But the political climate in the state has become more difficult, as evidenced by train GOP Gov. Paul LePage's bare-knuckle style. New England Republicans, meanwhile, have become an endangered species in Congress, with Collins the last one.
The controversial Kavanaugh presented an opening for Democrats. The senator lost standing with many women when she voted for Kavanaugh after questions Roe v. Wade and after Christine Blasey Ford came forward to sexually assaulted her ago, when both were teens. Kavanaugh vigorously denied assaulting her.
Critics feels coat hangers at Collins' office, and an envelope containing white powder was felt in Maine, both signs of how the situation had become.
Roger Katz, a moderate Republican, attorney and former state senator in Augusta. But he brushed off pundits' suggestions that she's going vulnerable. "Most people will look at her body of work over 24 years, not just a single issue," he said.
Collins has at least two Democratic challengers: House Speaker Sara Gideon and 2018 gubernatorial candidate Betsy Sweet.
Gideon, who has received the backing of the National Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, touted her homegrown fundraising success. But both sides are expected to draw Maine, the poorest state in New England.
The most expensive race in the state's history was last year's 2nd Congressional District, in which total spending topped $ 20 million. In the Senate race alone, $ 60 million could be spent, said David Farmer, a Democratic operative in the state.
The last time Collins was on the ballot, in 2014, she spent $ 5.2 million and coasted to reelection with over 68% of the vote.
Democratic activists incensed by the Kavanaugh vote already raised $ 4 million for whoever becomes the Democratic nominee, an online effort that brought in money from across the U.S.
A new super PAC supporting Collins, meanwhile, showed how quickly money can be raised. In a snap, 1820 PAC, a reference to the Maine state, $ 800,000 from a small group of wealthy Republican donors. That includes $ 500,000 Contributed by Stephen Schwarzman, the CEO of the Blackstone Wall Street investment firm, and a Republican megadonor who has contributed millions to GOP causes, Federal Election Commission records show.
Maine Momentum, the group running the new anti-Collins ad, plans to spend at least $ 716,000 on ads geared to the headlines. Maine Momentum is a nonprofit "dark money" group that can raise their money. And because it was recently established, it will be up to date.
Maine Momentum spokesman Chris Glynn, Gideon's Communications Director, said the group is focused on Collins' record on "health care, taxes and the money she has taken from special interests in Washington."
But Collins' campaign said it's ironic that they are so aggressive, that they have often lamented the loosened financial campaign that has led to a proliferation of dark money spending.
"Chuck Schumer's political ambitions and absolutely nothing to do with doing what's right for the people of Maine and our country," said Kevin Kelley, her campaign spokeswoman.
Slodysko reported from Washington.
(c) Associated Press
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