Collins, a Big Money 20 incumbent, has taken nearly $3 million from corporate PACs over the course of her political career
The Maine Senator used to tout her reliance on individual donors but raised more from corporate PACs than Mainers in the third fundraising quarter of 2019
ECU-endorsed challenger candidate Sara Gideon is rejecting corporate PAC money
When Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) first ran for U.S. Senate in 1996, she bragged that 95 percent of her contributions came from individual donors. Fast forward to 2019, and Collins’ grassroots support has dwindled along with her approval ratings.
So far in the 2020 cycle, Susan Collins has raised over $1 million from corporate PACs, which is more than four times the amount she’s raised from Mainers. In the third fundraising quarter of 2019 alone, the Maine Senator received more contributions from corporate PACs than Maine voters.
“Senator Susan Collins’ lack of grassroots support proves that Mainers are fed up with her siding more with Mitch McConnell and corporate special interests than with them,” said End Citizens United President Tiffany Muller. “Washington’s corruption has rubbed off on Susan Collins. She’s no longer the same senator that Mainers sent to office more than twenty years ago. Maine voters want new leadership, and Sara Gideon is answering their call by building a people-powered movement and rejecting corporate PAC money.”
ECU has conducted extensive polling and research showing that voters across the political spectrum support getting big money out of politics. ECU is a traditional political action committee (PAC) with more than four million members, including 21,700 in Maine. ECU raised $44 million last cycle and helped elect over 150 members to the 116th Congress, including two new U.S. Senators and 58 new U.S. Representatives. The reform group is entirely grassroots-funded with an average donation of just $14.
For a full list and additional background on the Big Money 20, click here.
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