Maine Democrats thought they had escaped one political mess when Graham Platner dropped out of the U.S. Senate race. Then their handpicked replacement, former Maine Senate President Troy Jackson, landed in a family story that sounds too strange to be true.

Shawn Farash captured the immediate reaction as the report began racing across social media: The claim is that Jackson and his longtime partner, Lana Pelletier, are second cousins and have two adult sons together. That serious personal allegation is supported by public obituary records tracing both family lines back to the same couple.

The political timing comes into focus through verified documentation. Maine Democratic delegates selected Jackson at a hastily arranged convention after Platner withdrew from the race following his June primary win amid sexual assault allegations he denied. Jackson, a former president of the Maine Senate and fifth-generation logger from northern Maine, had campaigned alongside Platner during his own unsuccessful gubernatorial run. Progressive activists quickly consolidated behind him once the replacement process began.

The Bangor Daily News obituary for Louis Pelletier identifies Louis as the son of Thomas Pelletier and Edith Thibodeau Pelletier, naming Albertine O’Leary as his sister. The same obituary places Lana Pelletier and Troy Jackson among Louis’ grandchildren and lists Chace and Camden Jackson as his great-grandchildren.

A separate Lajoie Funeral Home obituary for Albertine O’Leary identifies her as another daughter of Tom and Edith Pelletier, listing Colleen McBreairty among her four children. Colleen McBreairty is Jackson’s mother, with Troy among her grandchildren and Chace and Camden among her great-grandchildren.

Putting the two family records together confirms Louis Pelletier and Albertine O’Leary were siblings; their children were first cousins; and Lana Pelletier and Troy Jackson are second cousins. The records also independently support that Jackson and Pelletier have two sons.

Maine Revised Statutes, Title 19-A, Section 701 permits second cousins to marry without genetic counseling requirements, distinct from prohibitions on closer kinship ties. While Jackson and Pelletier are described publicly as longtime partners—some older political materials refer to them as husband and wife—the legal distinction means the relationship is not prohibited under state law.

For Democrats hoping Jackson would let them turn the page on Graham Platner, that honeymoon lasted less than a week.