Poll: Voters less likely to support Collins if she votes to confirm Kavanaugh

A Public Policy Polling survey released Tuesday shows a plurality of Maine voters want Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) to reject Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court and many will be less likely to support her for reelection if she votes to confirm him.

The poll found that 49 percent of Maine voters who responded do not think Collins should vote to confirm Kavanaugh. In addition, 47 percent of the total respondents said they’d be less likely to vote for her reelection in 2020 if she helped elevate Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.

That number grows to 53 percent if Kavanaugh hypothetically votes to overturn Roe v. Wade while on the high court.

The poll goes on to show a full majority, 56 percent, of Maine voters surveyed think Collins should review Kavanaugh’s full record and related documents before a potential vote. The Senate is under a tight deadline to do so.

The poll also found that Collins also has a 35 percent approval rating in her state, along with a 48 percent disapproval rate and 17 percent of respondents said they are “not sure” if they approve of her job performance or not.

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Collins is set to meet with Kavanaugh on Tuesday and is sure to have questions on his stance on abortion. She’s stated she could not support a nominee who had “demonstrated hostility” to Roe v. Wade. 

She is viewed as a swing vote in a confirmation hearing with no margin for error on the GOP side. With Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) away receiving treatment for cancer, losing a single Republican vote could sink Kavanaugh’s nomination if no Democrats support him.

However, Kavanaugh could still gain Democratic support from senators running for reelection in states Trump won. Sens. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.) are running in red states and all voted to confirm Justice Neil Gorsuch last year.

Public Policy Polling surveyed 529 Maine voters by phone from Aug. 17-18. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.3 percentage points.