Republican Senator Susan Collins has disclosed that she has a benign essential tremor, a condition she has had for decades, which she says affects her appearance but not her ability to perform her duties. The 73-year-old Maine senator, facing a tough re-election battle, told News Center Maine that she treats the condition with medication, which can cause trembling in her hands, arms and head.
Collins, first elected to the US Senate in 1996 and the longest-serving Republican woman in the chamber, emphasised that the condition is “extremely common” and has “absolutely no impact” on her work. She noted that she has not missed a vote in three decades and is confident in her ability to serve another six-year term. “If you talk to anybody in Washington, they will tell you that I am the hardest-working person that they have ever worked with,” she said.
The health of Collins has come under scrutiny as Democrats eye her seat as a potential flip in November’s midterm elections. Polls give her presumptive Democratic opponent, Graham Platner, a single-digit advantage. Platner, a military veteran, has highlighted Collins’s previous pledge to serve only two terms, a promise she made during her 1996 campaign.
According to the Mayo Clinic, essential tremor is a neurological condition often confused with Parkinson’s disease, causing rhythmic shaking that can affect any part of the body, most commonly the hands. Dr Rees Cosgrove of Mass General Brigham noted that about 5% of adults over 40 experience some form of the condition, rising to 20% in those over 65, and it is not associated with cognitive decline or memory loss.
