Democratic Senate candidate Troy Jackson told Portland’s NBC affiliate that Jewish residents of Maine refuse to call Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza a genocide “only because they’re Jewish.” His remarks come as he trails Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) in polls but leads her by 0.9 percentage points in the latest RealClearPolitics aggregate.
Jackson said: “It’s unfortunate that there are people here in Maine that don’t like to use that term only because they’re Jewish and what that means to them, with the Holocaust.”
He also said: “It’s [an] unbelievable thing that’s happened there that people that are innocent are being murdered, and it is a genocide.”
About 1% of Maine’s 1.4 million population identifies as Jewish, according to Pew Research Center.
The Numbers Behind Gaza
Experts say the ratio of confirmed civilian deaths to combatant deaths in Gaza is the lowest in the history of modern warfare.
Jackson’s campaign did not immediately respond to requests for additional comment or context.
Jackson’s Position on the Conflict
When asked about Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked the conflict, Jackson responded with equivalence. He said: “There’s people that are wrong on both sides of this issue. But in the end, senseless murders, horrific murders are happening to both sides, and that has to stop.”
He also called for an end to all US aid to Israel while Netanyahu is prime minister. Jackson said: “I don’t want the United States sending money, a blank check to him anymore, watching young children, innocent people die. I mean, I just disagree with that.”
- Jackson described the war as “an unbelievable thing” where “people that are innocent are being murdered.”
- He said Jews in Maine refuse to use the word genocide “only because they’re Jewish.”
- He demanded an end to all US aid to Israel while Netanyahu is prime minister.
- He called Netanyahu a “war criminal.”
| Claim | Jackson’s View |
|---|---|
| War on Gaza | “An unbelievable thing” where “people that are innocent are being murdered” |
| Term used by Jews | Refused “only because they’re Jewish” |
| Aid to Israel | End all US aid to Israel “while Netanyahu is prime minister” |
| Netanyahu | Called a “war criminal” |
What This Means for the Race
The Maine Senate race is widely regarded as a must-win for Democrats to regain control of the upper chamber. Jackson’s lead is narrow, and his comments on the conflict are likely to draw attention from both sides of the aisle.
Jackson’s argument rests on a specific reading of the conflict: that the deaths in Gaza are genocide, that the refusal to call it that is tied to Jewish identity, and that the funding for the war should stop entirely. He frames the issue as one of moral clarity, but his framing also puts him in direct opposition to those he describes as refusing to use the word.
His campaign has not yet responded to requests for further comment.
The race remains tight. Jackson’s position on the conflict is now part of the conversation in Maine, and it will likely shape how voters weigh his candidacy against Collins in the final stretch.
Where the paper stands
The paper backs neither side and backs instead a Senate race judged issue by issue against individual freedom, small business and no concentrations of power, without treating politics as a horse race between two machines that both gather power. The paper has no stake in who wins, only in whether candidates stand for the principles that matter.
Jackson’s position on the conflict is a test of those principles. He calls the war in Gaza a genocide, demands an end to all US aid to Israel, and calls Netanyahu a war criminal. Those are strong statements, and the paper does not take a position on them here. What matters is whether a candidate’s positions are consistent with the paper’s north star, not whether they win or lose.
The paper wants candidates to defend their positions openly, without evasion, and to answer questions directly when asked. Jackson’s campaign has not yet responded to requests for further comment. That silence leaves voters with only his own words to judge.
Source material: “Troy Jackson claims Maine Jews won’t call Gaza war a genocide ‘only because they’re Jewish’,” the New York Post.
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