Senate

Susan Collins, amid tough Maine Senate battle, says she’s long had benign tremor

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by Alexander Bolton - 05/07/26 8:46 AM ET

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by Alexander Bolton - 05/07/26 8:46 AM ET

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Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) revealed to a local media outlet that she has benign tremor that sometimes causes trembling in her hands, head or voice and is taking medication for the condition but said it “has absolutely no impact on my ability to do my job.”

Collins, who is 73, shared the details about her medical condition with NEWS CENTER Maine as she is preparing for a tough re-election battle against oyster fisherman and Marine and Army National Guard combat veteran Graham Platner.

“What I have is an extremely common condition that is called a benign essential tremor. I have had it for the entire time that I have served in the United States Senate. It has absolutely no impact on my ability to do my job or how I feel each day,” she said.

Collins noted that she has never missed a vote on the Senate floor during three decades of service and will soon cast her 10,000th consecutive vote.

“If you talk to anybody in Washington, they will tell you that I am the hardest working person that they have every worked with, and the fact is I’ve never missed a single vote in all the time that I’ve been honored to represent the people of Maine,” she said.

“I think that’s pretty good evidence of the fact that I am blessed with great health,” she added.

A benign tremor is not associated with cognitive decline or memory decline.

Collins was first elected to the Senate in 1996 and now chairs the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee.

The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates the Maine Senate race a toss up.

Platner led Collins 51 percent to 45 percent in an Echelon Insights poll conducted from April 3 to April 9.

Collins led Democratic Gov. Janet Mills 45 percent to 42 percent in a Maine People’s Resource Center poll conducted from March 20 to March 31. Mills has since dropped out of the race.

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