BREWER — The state’s largest sportsman’s association endorsed Republican Sen. Susan Collins for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday.
David Trahan, executive director of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine, said Collins has helped bring federal funds to Maine, including money to support fish hatcheries and PFAS remediation.
“The sporting traditions we cherish today, and the opportunities we hope to pass down to future generations, have been strengthened by her efforts,” Trahan said during an announcement at the Penobscot County Conservation Association in Brewer.
Collins, who is seeking a sixth Senate term, is being challenged by former Senate President Troy Jackson, a Democrat from Allagash.
Trahan said while the group awarded Collins an “A” for her performance, they gave Jackson an “F,” a grade tied to several of his Senate votes. In particular, Trahan said Jackson tried to kill a bill to preserve deer habitat after previously supporting it.
Maggie Amjad, Jackson’s spokeswoman, said in a statement that Jackson is a “lifelong sportsman and current gun owner.”
In the Maine Senate, he supported a 72-hour waiting period for gun purchases, expanding background checks and stronger red flag protections, she said.
“In the U.S. Senate, he’ll support commonsense measures to strengthen background checks and keep guns out of the hands of people who pose a danger to themselves or others, while protecting the rights of law-abiding gun owners,” she said.
The endorsement for Collins comes as the campaigns barrel toward the Nov. 3 election in one of the most highly anticipated Senate races in the country.
Trahan said SAM has over 70 fish and game clubs with over 30,000 members in addition to those who are members of the alliance, a number pegged at about 8,000.
He said they don’t tell people how to vote but give them information about the candidates they’ve endorsed. In addition, he said there are 300,000 licensed sports men and women in the state.
“We make up a big constituency of the voters in this state, and they need to be informed,” he said.
For her part, Collins said she works on land and water conservation issues in Washington and consults with Trahan on gun legislation.
She said a provision in a bill to crack down on gang members who convinced Mainers to purchase guns for them in exchange for drugs has been successful.
“We strengthened that and in the Safer Communities Act it has led to more than 500 prosecutions under those new straw purchasing laws,” she said.