Democrats’ risky bet against Kavanaugh

In Maine, Kavanaugh’s confirmation has reshaped the trajectory of the Senate race. Collins, who once sported one of the highest approval ratings in the country, has seen her bipartisan support drop in the wake of her yes vote. One recent public poll shows her with the second-highest disapproval rating in the Senate (behind Majority Leader Mitch McConnell); a poll conducted by an outside group in July shows her with a more respectable 49-41 favorable-unfavorable rating. Democrats recruited a top candidate, state House Speaker Sara Gideon, to challenge her. Gideon referenced Collins’s Kavanaugh vote in her announcement video.

While many other Senate candidates have sidestepped the Kavanaugh news, Collins and Gideon have embraced the issue. After the latest accusation against Kavanaugh was reported, Collins spokeswoman Annie Clark released a statement dismissing the controversy. “This is an allegation that lacks an accuser. … Not only did the student in question not recall such an incident, she also declined to be interviewed for the book.”

After Collins’s reaction, Gideon reiterated her opposition to Kavanaugh, writing on Twitter: “At the time of his confirmation, there was plenty of evidence that put into question Brett Kavanaugh’s fitness for the Supreme Court. Senator Collins cast a critical vote to confirm him anyway, and she said she doesn’t regret it.” A Gideon spokeswoman told National Journal that she “would need more information” to decide whether to support impeaching the justice.