Thanks so much for following along with us, not just for this debate, but for all the debates!

We’ll see you next time.

The candidates ended by answering a question about who should be on a Maine-themed Mount Rushmore, if such a thing were to exist.

Collins took a beat before answering Joshua Chamberlain, who fought for the Union in the Civil War. Jackson said Frances Perkins, the former Labor Secretary, and the first woman to hold a Cabinet position.

Jackson was asked about America’s role in the world. He pivoted to criticizing Trump’s orientation to power. He said he likes to hang out with Chinese President Xi Jinping and and Russian President Vladimir Putin because he admires their authoritarian leanings.

“He appreciates what they can do in their countries, and he’d like to do the same damn thing here,” Jackson said.

When asked whether she supports gun reforms, Collins noted that the state is approaching the anniversary of the mass shooting in Lewiston in 2023.

Collins noted that she supported the initial assault weapons ban, and that she supports a reasonable limit on magazine capacity and ban on bump stocks. She also said she is open to increasing the age limit on so-called assault weapons.

When asked by an everyday Mainer whether American democracy is under attack, Jackson said it was, noting the actions of ICE and Trump’s moves to try to restrict voting rights.

Collins said she takes a longer view.

If he was stilted in previous debates, Jackson seems to be finding more a comedic stride tonight. He’s slipped in a number of these one-liner jabs such as his jab about the Supreme Court, and they’re playing well in the room.

Hirschkorn asked the candidates about what judicial reforms they’d support. Jackson has called for term limits for the Supreme Court.

Collins said that’s not the way to go.

Collins was asked by an everyday Mainer why her bill to protect private equity from home sales did not include mobile homes.

The senator said her bill initially did include a provision to protect mobile homes, but that it was lost as the bill navigated D.C.

Jackson said climate change poses an opportunity for Maine: the state should pivot to green energy and sell its excess energy to other states.

Collins said she agrees climate change is a problem, but that the answer can’t be to pass policies that hurt Maine families. She notes that as Senate President, Jackson presided over a spike in energy prices in Maine.

Hirschkorn asked Collins about whether the reforms she’s pushed for — body camera requirements, for example — are adequate to rein in the agency’s excesses.

Collins said she supports additional reforms, including calling for the agency to be barred from certain sensitive areas such as schools and hospitals. And she said officers need more training and vetting.

The audience is getting rowdy. People were laughing and “oohing” and “ahhing” at several of the pithier lines in Jackson’s answer to Collins’ question about his campaign finance filing

Jackson said the sooner we get out of the Iran war, the better. And he once again criticized Collins for voting early on not to end the war.

Collins noted that Trump should have had a plan to deal with the Strait of Hormuz. Then she pivoted to talking about how America should undergo permitting reform to unleash its own energy resources.

“Is it just me that you look down on, or is it working class people overall?” Jackson asked Collins.

Collins said she doesn’t look down on anyone. She noted her first job was picking potatoes. She said she has worked since she was 10 years old.

Given an opportunity to ask Jackson a question, Collins noted Jackson’s promise to release his campaign finance report by Wednesday morning — a deadline he blew.

And she accused Jackson of coordinating with well-funded PACs funded by billionaires while criticizing Collins for her support from billionaires.

Jackson said retribution isn’t the way.

“I think we need to deliver for the American public,” Jackson said.

Collins noted the areas where she disagrees with the controversial U.S. Health and Human Services department secretary. For example, she doesn’t believe vaccines cause autism — a link Kennedy has made in the past.

But she said she agrees with him on his focus on chronic diseases. Overall, she’t said she didn’t regret the vote.

A young man just stood up from the fourth row and interrupted Collins before she could answer a question. He was quickly escorted out of the room to applause.

Someone is shouting about AI data centers, causing the debate to come to a halt.

Collins accused the instigator of being a Jackson supporter.

Collins said a solution to the debt crisis is growing the economy. Part of that means not raising taxes the way that she said Jackson would.

And she contended that in the appropriations committee, spending has remained relatively flat.

When asked by moderator Phil Hirschkorn for an example of a time her vote against her party has affected the outcome, Collins noted her organized opposition against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

But one of Collins’ colleagues defected from the effort, and Hegseth was eventually confirmed.

When asked why his party should lead Congress, Jackson focused on a lot of negatives.

He said Congress shouldn’t be abiding President Donald Trump’s trade wars, his war in Iran and his work to cut taxes for the wealthy.

Following a familiar line of attack, Jackson hit Collins for voting to advance the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Collins did not ultimately support the measure, but Jackson has repeatedly attacked her for a vote to advance the bill. (She’s argued it would have made the floor anyway, and that because of her vote, she was able to get a $50 billion fund for rural hospitals amended onto it.)

Like she has in other debates, Collins touted her work to secure some $1.5 billion for Maine projects.

She noted that one of the first measures she pushed for in Congress was a tax deduction on interest payments for student loans.

It’s the top of the hour, time to debate.

He promised to deliver the numbers Wednesday morning. They came about 36 hours later — though still before the statutory deadline.

Take a look at our rundown of the third quarter fundraising by Collins and Jackson. The Democrat had a heck of a quarter — but he’s still being badly outraised by Collins and her allies.

The candidates have arrived! The room is full mostly of Collins and Jackson supporters, who broke out into applause as the candidates took the stage. The two met in a cordial handshake and are now at their podiums taking last minute notes.

Here’s a look a the scenes outside the debate. Might be a bit more raucous inside than the past three.

By now, Jackson, 58, and Collins, 73, are familiar with each other’s debating style and lines of attack.

They’ve clashed repeatedly in prior meetings over characterizations of their long records in public service. So it will be interesting to see if their frustrations boil over more than they have in the past debates — each of which has featured testy exchanges and demands for apologies.

Just under an hour before the candidates are set to take the stage, supporters of each have gathered in the parking lot outside the venue. Jackson’s supporters are blasting music and holding a large banner that reads “Let them eat road salt” — a zinger from the first debate.

Across the lot, Collins supporters are doing a call-and-response with the senator’s first and last name in front of a large tour bus.

We are about an hour from go time.

Get caught up on our past debate coverage before we get started. You can read our takeaways from the first debate here, from the second debate here and from the third debate here.