Susan Collins drops brutal reminder of Dem rival rocked by accusations

KITTERY, Maine - Republican Sen.

Susan Collins says her Democratic challenger in Maine's high-stakes U.S.

Senate race apparently "struggles to control his temper." Collins broke her silence about Democratic Senate nominee Troy Jackson on Friday after a newly resurfaced 1988 police record detailed accusations that Jackson assaulted a man and pushed his longtime partner during a late-night confrontation in Fort Kent, Maine.

Jackson, a one-time logger and a former state Senate president, was chosen a couple of weeks ago by Maine Democrats to replace embattled oysterman Graham Platner , who won the June Democratic Senate nomination in a landslide before imploding and dropping out of the race last month amid rape allegations that he denied.

WHAT THE NEW FOX NEWS POLL IN MAINE'S CRUCIAL SENATE RACE SHOWS Jackson is challenging Collins in a crucial race that's among a dozen that will determine if the GOP holds onto its slim Senate majority .

Asked by Fox News Digital about recent reports regarding Jackson, Collins said, "He’s the one that needs to respond to the reports.

I’m not going to comment on them.

But I will say that, based on widespread reporting, it appears that he struggles to control his temper." Collins spoke with reporters after kicking off a statewide bus tour on Friday in Kittery, Maine.

The longtime senator is the only GOP incumbent running for re-election in a state President Donald Trump lost in the 2024 election.

A Fox News poll in Maine released on Wednesday indicated Jackson holding a slight two-point edge over Collins, which was within the survey's sampling error.

RESURFACED ASSAULT REPORT PUTS DEM SENATE NOMINEE IN GOP CROSSHAIRS: 'GRAHAM PLATNER 2.0' The Bangor Daily News reported this week that the police report accused Jackson of assaulting another man during a late-night brawl on March 12, 1988.

INTERNET ERUPTS OVER REPORT THAT PLATNER'S REPLACEMENT IN KEY SENATE RACE FATHERED CHILDREN WITH SECOND COUSIN The brawl was over Jackson's longtime partner Lana Pelletier, who, according to records, is also his second cousin .

Jackson and Pelletier share two adult children.

The police report indicates that Pelletier told officers at the time that Jackson "pushed her around," a statement she now denies making.