Graham Platner leads Gov. Janet Mills by a wide double-digit margin in Maine’s Democratic Senate primary, boosted by strong support from men, according to a new poll — and either Democrat would narrowly edge out Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a general election matchup.
An Emerson College survey released Thursday found Mr. Platner with a 55% to 28% lead over Ms. Mills among likely voters, with 13% undecided.
Mr. Platner’s edge was driven in part by a commanding advantage with male voters — 63% to 22% in the primary — and he led among women as well, 50% to 32%.
The primary is June 9.
In hypothetical general election matchups, Mr. Platner leads Ms. Collins 48% to 41%, with 6% undecided, and Ms. Mills edges Ms. Collins 46% to 43%, with the remainder undecided or backing someone else. Democrats’ narrow path to flipping Senate control hinges on their ability to unseat Ms. Collins in November.
Ms. Collins’ approval rating is underwater, with 57% of likely voters viewing her unfavorably compared with 38% who like her. Ms. Mills is also underwater, 54% to 40%.
Mr. Platner’s numbers are more split — 42% favorable, 38% unfavorable, with 15% neutral.
The Emerson College Polling survey of 1,075 Maine likely voters was conducted March 21-23 and carries a margin of error of 2.9 percentage points.
