Augusta, Maine - Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner has surged ahead of incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins in one of the first major polls since Maine Governor Janet Mills dropped out of the race.
"One month ago a billionaire-funded super PAC launched a massive wave of attack ads in this race. Millions of dollars, all to give Susan Collins her sixth term," Platner said in a post to X on Wednesday. "One month later, we lead by 7."
His comment referenced a newly-conducted poll from Pan Atlantic Research, the first one since Mills dropped out in April, which predicted a massive win for Platner in a one-on-one race against Collins.
The survey found that 48% of likely voters said they would back Platner in the midterm elections, while only 41% of likely voters said they'd vote for Collins.
While that still leaves 11% of the voting pool undecided between the two candidates, it gives Platner a 7% lead over Collins if the election were theoretically held today.
Interestingly, the poll found that Platner is leading Collins among registered independent voters 48% to 35%, a margin of 13%. This is particularly significant, as independents make up about a third of Maine's electorate.
While the poll also looked at matchups for Maine's upcoming primary elections in June, the results are less significant because Mills' withdrawal from the race more or less guarantees that Platner will be the Democratic nominee.
This latest round of polling follows months of positive signs for Platner, who has consistently outperformed both Mills and Collins in most polls since January.