Obama Endorses Troy Jackson in Maine Senate Race

Getty Images/Scott Olsen/Finn Gomez Barack Obama has thrown his backing behind a progressive candidate gunning for a seat that Republicans desperately need to hold onto at the November 3 midterms.

The former president’s endorsement of Troy Jackson in the Maine Senate race gives the Democratic nominee a last-minute boost before he goes head-to-head in a fresh debate with GOP incumbent Susan Collins.

Jackson and Collins are set for their second showdown in three days, after the Republican senator struggled on Tuesday to defend her record in office against Jackson’s attacks that she has failed everyday voters.

She is now behind him in the polls, and at risk of losing a seat her party has held for almost 30 years.

Obama praised Jackson, a former state senator, as a blue-collar champion in a video the candidate’s campaign shared Thursday morning.

“I’m proud to be on board.

In this economy, we need a fighter like Troy,” he said.

“Do not sit this one out.

Get out there and vote for Troy Jackson.” The 44th president has come out swinging for Democrats ahead of the midterms, where Donald Trump’s plummeting approval ratings, driven by his war with Iran and widespread unaffordability, have already helped the party gain a nine-point lead.

Obama has ramped up mentoring candidates in key races across the country, appearing in support of Senate hopeful James Talarcio and gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa in Texas, as well as Josh Turek in Iowa’s Senate race.

His team says that he’s now recorded ads for two dozen other candidates across the country, expected to air in the coming days, and that he’ll be stumping in Michigan for Senate hopeful Abdul El-Sayed and would-be governor Jocelyn Benson.

They stress his strategy ahead of the November polls “is driven by where he can move the needle with Democrats and persuadable voters.” The Daily Beast has contacted Jackson and Collins’ campaigns for comment on this story.

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