With the midterm elections just a week away, Republican control of the U.S. Senate might come down to two Republican women. RealClearPolitics rates 10 Senate races as toss-ups. To keep control of the chamber, Republicans may need wins from Sen. Susan Collins in Maine and Rep. Ashley Hinson in Iowa, and both are in tight contests.

Collins, who has served in the Senate for nearly three decades, is struggling to pull ahead of Democrat Troy Jackson.

Hinson is in a closer-than-expected race in a state President Donald Trump has won three times – including by 13 percentage points in 2024.

Their struggles show what it's like to be a Republican woman running in a tough, Trump-centered political climate not of her making.

Sen. Susan Collins may have met her match in Maine

Collins has trailed Jackson for weeks. She is the only Republican senator seeking reelection in a state Trump lost in 2024. A new Fox News poll has the two tied at 49% among likely voters, perhaps because Collins got a bump from Trump's targeted tariff relief for Maine farmers.

She’s been through this before. In 2020, polls showed Collins trailing Democrat Sara Gideon, but she ended up winning by nearly 9 points.

Insiders say the race is less about Jackson than about whether Mainers are tired of Collins and ready for a change. In the same Fox News poll, 53% of likely voters said they're concerned she votes with Trump too much.

Trump's........

© USA TODAY