A Scarborough, Maine, laundromat owner who backs Republican Sen. Susan Collins says she was misled into appearing in a political ad that supports Collins’ Democratic challenger, Troy Jackson, according to reports from The Maine Wire and Newsweek.
Kelly Kusnirak, a longtime Republican, told The Robinson Report, a news platform founded by Maine Wire editor-in-chief Steve Robinson, that she believed she was filming a spot for the Collins campaign. “I definitely feel like I was misled because when I did finally see the ad, I was like, ‘oh wow, look at that banner, Troy Jackson,'” Kusnirak said, according to Newsweek. “I was surprised to see that it was for Troy Jackson. Totally did not expect that. I thought it was going to be for Susan Collins.”
"I definitely feel like I was misled," Kelly Kusnirak told The Robinson Report. https://t.co/SX6PlsATPv
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) October 29, 2026
How she says it happened
According to The Maine Wire, Kusnirak said a videographer approached her at her business around March or April, identified himself as shooting for the Susan Collins campaign, and asked whether she would take part. She said she agreed because she supports Collins, the outlet reported.
“I said yes because I support Susan,” Kusnirak said in a statement and a follow-up video provided to The Robinson Report, according to The Maine Wire. “I had no idea that months later my face and my words would show up in an ad for her opponent. I feel like I was duped.”
The Maine Wire reported that the footage is now being used in a digital and streaming ad supporting Jackson. The outlet noted that at the time of the filming, Jackson had not yet replaced Graham Platner as the Democratic nominee in the race.
Who paid for the ad
The original ad was paid for by the Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy PAC, known as CFFE PAC, and its disclaimer says it was “not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee,” according to Newsweek. Newsweek reported that the spot shows Kusnirak sitting in her laundromat discussing the cost of living in Maine, spliced together with messages including “Susan Collins is too expensive for Maine.”
Newsweek said it had contacted the Jackson campaign and the group that produced the original ad for comment. Neither outlet reported a response from the Jackson campaign or CFFE PAC at the time of publication.
Collins campaign fires back
Kusnirak now appears in a counter-ad authorized and paid for by the Collins campaign, according to Newsweek. In that ad, she calls herself “not a Troy Jackson supporter at all” and asks viewers, “if they’re willing to mislead me, how far will they go?” Newsweek reported.
The dispute lands days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, with Maine’s Senate race between Collins and Jackson among the contests that could help decide control of the chamber. Questions about how outside groups recruit the voters who appear in their ads are likely to follow the race into its final stretch.
Daily Beltway will update this story if the Jackson campaign or CFFE PAC responds.
Sources
- Newsweek: Maine laundromat owner says she was tricked into starring in Troy Jackson ad
- The Maine Wire: Maine Woman Says Troy Jackson Duped Her Into Playing Role in Political Ad
- Newsweek on X
Sources cited
Sources
- Original post: Newsweek (@Newsweek) on X, Oct 29, 2026
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