A former Air Force employee and military spouse is the latest Democrat to launch a campaign against Republican Sen. Susan Collins.
Daira Smith-Rodriguez filed her candidacy paperwork more than a month ago but formally launched her campaign on Thursday, hitting some of the same progressive and populist themes as other contenders in the increasingly crowded Democratic primary.
A former civilian contracting officer for the U.S. Air Force for nearly 15 years, Smith-Rodriguez said she stood up to the "military industrial defense complex" during negotiations and that she would bring those aggressive auditing and oversight skills to the Senate.
In her campaign video, the Democrat also went after the food industry as she is shown walking through the aisles of a supermarket.
"The oligarchy is not a thousand miles away, it's here," she said as the names of several massive food, beverage and agriculture companies flash across the screen. "They are taking a cut, they are making a profit and millions of Americans are surrounded by food they can't eat. And Big Food owns Congress, so all we get are thousands of bad choices."
Smith-Rodriguez said she is pro-union, accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and supports raising taxes on the wealthy and corporations. She also talked about a broken system and how she and her husband struggled to find affordable housing when the returned to Maine. She also accused Collins of failing to protect reproductive freedoms.
During an interview, Smith-Rodriguez said she left her civilian Air Force job about two months ago in part to run for office. She currently lives in Biddeford as she waits for her husband, an officer in the Maine Air National Guard, to return from an overseas deployment. Smith-Rodriguez has never held political office before, which she sees as a benefit during this campaign.
"I think right now people are really hungry for political outsiders," she said. "We see what is happening in Washington when career politicians like Susan Collins and political insiders just continuing to do more of the same, continuing to let us down. ... I'm not part of that system but I do have really relevant experience that will allow me to be a disruptor in a positive way."
She's one of eight Democrats in the race so far. Two of the most recent entrants to the race are Maine Beer Co. co-founder Dan Kleban of Cumberland and oysterman and Marine Corps veteran Graham Platner of Sullivan. Platner's populist and anti-establishment message generated an especially loud buzz last month, enabling the candidate to reportedly raise more than $2.5 million during his first month.
But Democrats in Maine and in Washington, D.C., are anxiously waiting to learn whether Gov. Janet Mills joins the primary. Mills has said she is seriously considering Collins but likely won't make a decision until later this fall.
