Platner's replacement faces new Senate campaign headache tied to his son's lobbying

Former state Senator Troy Jackson, who has replaced Graham Platner as the Democratic Senate nominee in Maine, backed bills seeking to send millions of dollars in public funds to a college while his son lobbied on its behalf, documents show.

Jackson’s son, Chace, was registered as a lobbyist for the Maine Maritime Academy at the same time as his father was serving as president of the Maine Senate , according to state lobbying records.

In 2024, the elder Jackson co-sponsored legislation that would have sent $13.4 million to the maritime academy after pushing a bill providing the institution with an additional $2 million per year in 2023, with both pieces of legislation being drafted while Jackson's son was lobbying for the college.

"Troy Jackson authored Augusta’s failed status quo and has turned public office into a family affair of self-enrichment," National Republican Senatorial Committee press secretary Bernadette Breslin told Fox News Digital.

"He’ll always prioritize personal kickbacks over the needs of working Mainers." 5 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT GRAHAM PLATNER ALLY POISED TO TAKE ON SUSAN COLLINS Before his son was lobbying on its behalf, Jackson also supported legislation in early 2022 that provided the academy with a one-time $6.8 million payment to fund repairs to one of its buildings.

Jackson’s son first registered as a lobbyist for the Maine Maritime Academy in December 2022, according to public records.

He renewed his lobbying registration in January 2024, just as his father was co-sponsoring legislation that would have sent over $10 million to the academy.

While the Maine Maritime Academy funding boost Jackson backed in 2023 went into effect, his 2024 bill passed the Maine Senate but was never signed into law.

"Troy Jackson has fought for working Mainers, and [is] guided by one goal: fixing our broken system so Maine's working families stop getting squeezed while the rich get richer," a spokesperson for the Jackson campaign told the Washington Free Beacon, which first reported on the lobbying records.

LIKELY PLATNER REPLACEMENT'S RESURFACED POSTS ON 'DEMOCRACY' COME BACK TO BITE HIM: 'HYPOCRITICAL SOCIALIST' In April, Jackson justified his failed run for governor by claiming that the "status quo isn't working" in Maine because of " special interests , high-priced lobbyists and corporate greed." In addition to representing the Maine Maritime Academy, Chace Jackson works as one of the expensive lobbyists his father has criticized, at one point representing the multinational alcohol company behind premium beverages such as Johnnie Walker whiskey and Don Julio tequila.

In 2024, while his father was the Maine Senate president, the younger Jackson represented nine clients.