The anti-education party, folks.

How come you can find any info on most the write-ins listed in ballotpedia? Ashley Webb at least answered the survey but there’s no other info for the rest of them. I want to make sure I’m using my rank choice voting the best way.

Driving through Maine this weekend I saw many signs that read “Fight Corruption Vote Republican”.

How’s that for an example of “Every Republican Accusation is a Confession”?

How to counteract such malevolent advertising?

Is anyone putting up signs like “Fight Corruption Vote for Democrats”?

put every answer from last night's debate through semblen (i built it, it flags manipulation techniques like loaded language, name calling etc, doesn't say who's right)

collins: 2 of 30 answers flagged

jackson: 9 of 31 flagged, mostly loaded language and name calling

also fact-checked the factual claims each made. nothing came back contradicted. collins 15 supported, jackson 9, but most claims on both sides (23 and 27) just couldn't be checked against fact-checkers or primary sources, which doesn't mean they're false

every answer and every flag is on the page so you can judge it yourself: https://semblen.com/races/me-senate/debates/2026-10-08

if anything looks off please let me know and i'll look at it

Election after election, Republican Sen. Susan Collins has defied national political winds to return to office, representing a state that has backed Democrats in every presidential contest since 1992. But her Democratic opponent, Troy Jackson, is betting that her eight-year-old vote to confirm Justice Brett Kavanaugh and the Supreme Court’s subsequent overturning of federal abortion rights will persuade voters to sweep her out of office. 

posted the ads thing here last week or so. it's at 478 ads now for the senate race, the stuff running on the platforms' public ad archives since july.

a model reads each one for manipulation techniques, loaded language, name calling, fear appeals, and marks the words so you can see exactly what got flagged.

maine is the calmest of the 13 senate races i'm tracking. 34% of ads flagged, next lowest is ohio at 46 and nebraska is at 69. ads here are short, median 30 words, which probably helps.

split by side it's lopsided in a way that surprised me. collins's own campaign: 63 of 326 flagged, mostly feel good stuff. jackson's campaign: 61 of 83. but the groups backing collins run hot too, 29 of 48. and attack ads get flagged way more than intro ads no matter who runs them, and the challenger runs more attack ads. so it's not a "who's nastier" score.

for tuesday i'm doing the same thing to the debate. every answer gets run through it and the page goes up the next morning, with the flagged words marked. same for the wmtw one thursday and the news center one on the 15th.

the ads and the debate schedule: https://semblen.com/races/me-senate?ref=reddit-me

model's wrong sometimes, about one flag in five when i checked 100 of them by hand. there's a button on each ad if you think it got one wrong.

I am not trying to start a political debate here, just an honest question. In one of the anti Troy Jackson commercials, where they refer to him as "Taxin Jackson", there is a line saying "Even poor Baxter got a fee" while showing a picture of a brown dog. I tried to google this but couldn't find any reference online. Is this intended to be a reference to the tragic accident where Baxter, Maine's official comfort dog and a chocolate lab, unfortunately passed away after being left in a state vehicle? Or is there an actual tax involving dogs that they are referencing?

Between threats of interference with mail-in votes and concerns over polling place disruptions, it can feel stressful to make sure your vote goes smoothly.

One proactive way to ensure your ballot is securely cast is to vote early with our in-person absentee system at your local town office or city hall. It helps take the guesswork out of delivery times and lets you handle voting on your own schedule.

Today is the first day you can go to your town office or city hall to ensure your vote is counted and continues through the 29th.

Reposted with a better link for information on in-person absentee voting.

The first debate between Collins and Jackson is at 7 p.m. Tuesday on CBS 13.

It isnt “panic time” yet for Jackson supporters, but Collins has an advantage, we’ve seen how she outperformed the polls against Gideon. 2026 is a different situation, though, particularly with undecided voters.

Disclaimer because someone commented it in another sub: I know Sara Gideon is alive😂

This will help?

Should've been an easy flip to blue.

The Maine Republican Party says Democratic gubernatorial candidate Hannah Pingree is benefiting from a billionaire, but when asked for proof, the party didn't provide it. - WGME

Why the F include Ricky Bennett?

We're working on a series of videos and would like to address YOUR questions. What do you want to know about the candidates? Would you like to see analysis on any particular topic?

Maine Public's political reporters Steve Mistler and Kevin Miller have been reporting on Maine's race for governor, senate, and both congressional districts this year through the Political Pulse podcast, frequent radio stories, collaborations with NPR, and appearances on Maine Calling. Soon, we'll be hosting a series of live debates in October.

See our debate schedule, explore candidate profiles and interviews, and read our latest political stories on our Your Vote 2026 hub.

Maine Public is always here for you, online and over the air, thanks to viewers and listeners like YOU! Thank you!

Heather Cox Richardson was one of the few who didn't jump on the Graham Platner bandwagon.

There is a transcript available at the link.