WEEKEND READING: Collins “Continues to Lose Support” & “Disapproval Rating Spikes” Ahead of 2020

Portland Press Herald: “Collins’ approval rating dropped 16 points from the first quarter of 2019, the most of any senator in the survey”

Bangor Daily News: “Susan Collins’ disapproval rating spikes in new poll ahead of targeted 2020 re-election bid”

New polling from Morning Consult released this week shows that Senator Susan Collins continues to lose significant support among Mainers. Collins’ net approval has dropped 16 points since earlier this year – “the biggest decline of anyone in the Senate” – and fallen a staggering 43 points since President Donald Trump took office. According to Morning Consult’s data, only Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is more unpopular.

This is the latest in what Morning Consult has previously called a “steady downward trend” in Collins’ support. Another poll from Critical Insights conducted in May showed Collins’ eroding approval among Mainers had “dropped significantly” and was at an “all-time low.”

Senator Collins’ tanking support comes as she has joined forces with McConnell, President Trump, and her special interest donors to pass a tax giveaway to giant corporations and the ultra-wealthy that laid the foundation for the GOP lawsuit to end protections for pre-existing conditions and voted to confirm more than 100 Trump-nominated judges. Collins isn’t just paying a price in the polls for abandoning her constituents, it’s also reflected in her fundraising – just 5 percent of Collins’ contributions last quarter came from Mainers.

Here’s what they’re saying about Collins’ “stunning” drop in the polls:

• Bangor Daily News: Susan Collins’ disapproval rating spikes in new poll ahead of targeted 2020 re-election bid

• Portland Press Herald: The poll “found Collins had the second lowest approval rating of any senator… Collins’ approval rating dropped 16 points from the first quarter of 2019, the most of any senator in the survey.”

• Boston Globe: “Susan Collins was once one of the most popular senators in America, but a new poll suggests that President Trump has affected her standing in Maine — all while the Republican faces what could be her toughest re-election campaign… no other senator as seen their standing hurt more by Trump in their home state.”

• Maine Beacon: As her approval tanks in Maine, Collins leans on out-of-state money for reelection

• Portland Press Herald (Opinion): Bill Nemitz: Sen. Collins, ever fearful of Trump, teeters on the tightrope

• FiveThirtyEight: Mitch McConnell Is The Only Senator More Unpopular Than Susan Collins

• Morning Consult: Susan Collins Continues to Lose Support in Maine

• New York Magazine: Susan Collins’s Approval Rating Dives As Reelection Contest Approaches

Read more here about Collins’ “eroding” support among Mainers and why she’s a “top Senate target” in 2020.

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