Wabanaki Leaders Split Between Collins Funding and Jackson Sovereignty Push
Collins has directed roughly $6 million to housing at Motahkomikuk alone, while Jackson helped launch the task force that reframed tribal-state relations.
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Wabanaki leaders are divided between U.S. Sen. Susan Collins and Democratic challenger Troy Jackson in Maine's 2026 Senate race, with some citing federal money Collins has steered to tribal communities and others pointing to Jackson's record on tribal sovereignty, The Portland Press Herald reported on October 15.
Collins, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, has taken credit for nearly $6 million for housing at the Passamaquoddy Reservation at Motahkomikuk, $5 million for wastewater improvements at Sipayik, $530,000 for sidewalks in a Mi'kmaq affordable housing development and additional funding for Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness programs. When a $4 million flood-protection grant for Sipayik's wastewater system was frozen during a federal funding halt, tribal officials met with Collins and the money was released.
Jackson, as Senate president, joined then-House Speaker Sara Gideon in convening the Wabanaki chiefs in 2019 and creating a task force that produced 300 pages of research and recommendations. Maulian Bryant, now head of the Wabanaki Alliance, said the effort reframed tribal-state relations.
A Collins spokesperson said on October 13 that the senator supports applying individual federal laws to the tribes but declined to take a position at the federal level. A Jackson spokesperson also declined to take a stance on that question.
Four chiefs endorsed Democrat Hannah Pingree for governor in early October 2026.
This story was first reported by The Portland Press Herald.
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