How Platner’s insurgent Maine Senate bid fell apart

News How Platner’s insurgent Maine Senate bid fell apart Comments: by Ashleigh Fields - 07/09/26 3:44 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Ashleigh Fields - 07/09/26 3:44 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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Former Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner’s insurgent bid to oust incumbent Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) from the legislature quickly fell apart in a turbulent and public string of controversies that left the Democratic party with little time to put together a comparable campaign.

Platner first set his sights on the upper chamber on August 19, 2025, branding himself as an oyster farmer and veteran that would champion policies for the working class.

His charismatic tenor drew crowds at rallies that built a network of grassroots organizers committed to sending Platner to Washington, D.C. in the fall.

He quickly rose among the ranks of popularity, with voters favoring him over Maine’s current governor, Janet Mills (D-Maine), who previously served as the 57th attorney general for the Pine Tree State and as a member of the state House of Representatives.

Mills had Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-N.Y.) backing, but Platner had his own growing chorus of supporters, with a stronghold on Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who defended him in the wake of several controversies.

Nine months into his campaign, Platner had already come under fire for racist social media posts and a chest tattoo some say resembles Nazi insignia.

One of his Reddit posts in 2013 said that people shouldn’t get so drunk “they wind up having sex with someone they don’t mean to” and that sexual assault victims should “just take some responsibility for themselves.”

By June, reports surfaced regarding sexual messages Platner sent to women who were not his wife.

“I’m sure he’s not a saint,” Sanders told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, when asked about the allegations.

The Vermont lawmaker said Platner struggled with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) after his deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan and said some misjudgments could be credited to those experiences in warfare.

Platner’s wife, Amy Gertner, also stood beside him, defending him from the heat and onset of questions about his moral compass.

“I think it’s shameful behavior to spend time and energy and resources on negative ads and negative stories on Graham when all he’s trying to do is improve the lives of people who work for a living,” Gertner said in a video shared on Platner’s campaign social media account.

Platner also came to Washington to defend himself over the string of allegations in a closed door meeting with Senate Democrats, who he’d hoped would one day become his colleagues.

He assured them that no other scandals would be brought forth.

A little over a month after his wife pleaded his case on the internet, two of Platner’s ex-girlfriends stepped forward alleging he had raped them.

Platner’s former girlfriend Jenny Racicot stated that ex-Senate candidate entered her home uninvited while intoxicated and sexually assaulted her in 2021 after they had been dating on and off.

Lyndsey Fifield, who dated Platner from roughly 2013 to 2014, also came forward to accuse him of a pattern of abuse and non-consensual behavior.

She alleged Platner was physically aggressive, stating that he repeatedly grabbed her — at times leaving bruises — and once locked her inside a bedroom, she said during an on-camera interview with CNN.

Platner admitted to the New York Times that he “too often self-medicated with alcohol and was a far from perfect boyfriend” during what he described as a “very dark period of my life.”

“I take responsibility for all of that and wish I had been better. Any characterization beyond that is false, and I believe, politically motivated,” he added.

“I’m not proud of who I was then, but I am proud of the work I’ve done since, and the movement we are building in Maine,” he continued.

Fifield also stated that Platner knew his chest tattoo was a Nazi symbol and routinely joked about it, rejecting his claims that he did not know the historical meaning of the tattoo before it was flagged during opposition research in late 2025.

After Fifield and Racicot stepped forward, Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) pulled their endorsement of Platner. The Democratic-aligned Senate Majority PAC also uprooted its $33 million investment from Platner following the severe sexual assault allegations.

“In light of these very serious allegations, I have recommended that he step aside,” Sanders said in a statement.

“Now more than ever we need leaders in Washington who reflect our values,” Warren wrote.

“There can be no tolerance for sexual assault. Working families are counting on Democrats to win the Senate election in Maine to unrig our economy and hold Donald Trump accountable,” she added. “With so much at stake, the best path forward is for Graham Platner to step aside as the Democratic nominee and address these serious allegations outside this Senate race.”

Platner posted a video on the social media platform X Wednesday night, announcing that he’d suspend campaign operations and alleging the Democratic establishment plotted against his success. He denied the allegations made against him.

“We believe that for the movement to continue, it can’t be me. And for that reason, we are suspending campaign operations,” he said.

“I know that some will think it’s an admission of guilt, and it most certainly is not. We’re not doing it because of the allegations. We’re doing it because of the structures that are being taken away from us by those in power,” he added.

Seemingly overnight, the blanket of political support acquired through months of outreach was pulled from Platner and his team, who allege they’ve been excluded from picking a replacement candidate. The Maine Democratic Party has denied those accusations and said they are looking to hold a convention to replace Platner.

“It’s been a slow-rolling disaster instead of all happening at once — it’s been really drawn out and painful and difficult to watch,” Ronald Holmes III, Platner’s former national finance director, told The New York Times.

“It’s like we’ve been watching a mile-long train derail at four miles an hour,” he added.

Holmes resigned from the campaign last year over concerns about the professionalism of the campaign’s senior leadership. Others stayed on until the end and have stuck beside Platner, who denies all of the allegations made against him.

“If there’s one lesson Democrats need to take from this, it’s to stop betting on vibe-based candidates with glaring red flags. Voters aren’t looking for a stereotype — they’re looking for authentic leaders who earn their trust, deliver results, and are willing to fight for them,” EMILYs List President Jessica Mackler said in a statement.

The PAC chose not to endorse him after racist Reddit posts were unveiled, favoring Mills instead. They’re currently looking to back a woman to replace Platner as the Democratic nominee for the Maine Senate race.

“Now Democrats can get back to the work that matters: defeating Susan Collins,” she said.