Augusta, Maine – In case you missed it, new reporting from NBC News highlights how Susan Collins’ decisive vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh will be a central issue in Maine’s Senate race.

This is the first time Collins will be on the ballot since Kavanaugh helped overturn Roe v. Wade – after Collins voted to confirm him and insisted he viewed Roe as “settled” law. Mainers continue to hold Collins accountable for the vote that stripped away a constitutional right that had stood for nearly 50 years.

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NBC News: Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh takes on a starring role in Maine’s Senate race

By Natasha Korecki and Sahil Kapur

June 11, 2026

• In a time of war, rising costs and Medicaid cuts, Democrats in Maine say another issue is motivating them in this fall’s Senate race: Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the Supreme Court eight years ago.

• A pivotal vote by longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine pushed Kavanaugh over the finish line in 2018 after she famously said he considered Roe v. Wade “settled law” — a comment that turned out to be wrong.

• In 2022, Kavanaugh was a deciding vote in the 5-4 majority that overturned the landmark case, paving the way for abortion bans in many states.

• “After she voted for Kavanaugh, that was the last straw,” said Arie Mobley, who attended a rally on Friday for Collins’ presumptive challenger Graham Platner, a Democrat. […]

• Now, with Senate control on the line, Kavanaugh’s shadow is looming large in Maine in more ways than one. In 2018, Collins defended the Supreme Court nominee as he faced allegations of sexual assault and sexual misconduct that Democrats called disqualifying for a position of power […]

• In a February interview with an NBC affiliate in Maine, Collins defended her vote.

• “I believe that I cast the right vote. It was a difficult vote that I spent a great deal of time. I had two interviews. I consulted with legal experts,” Collins said. She added that she also voted for Democratic-appointed justices and lamented, “I never hear from Democrats giving me credit.”