Graham Platner drops out of Maine U.S. Senate race

Democratic nominee Graham Platner dropped out of Maine’s U.S. Senate race on Wednesday, two days after an accusation of sexual assault tanked support from his party. 

“This is incredibly difficult because I know that some will think it’s an admission of guilt, and it most certainly is not,” Platner said in an 11 minute video posted to social media announcing he suspended campaign operations. “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.”

Platner’s exit clouds Democrats’ hopes of winning back the U.S. Senate majority, as Maine’s seat long held by Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins is seen as crucial for that aim. The state party is tasked to replace him in just a few weeks time.

While Platner said he intends to file his paperwork to withdraw, he added, “The process needs to assure that what comes next is reflective of the Mainers who on June 9 turned out and showed that they are desperate for a different kind of politics.”

Some voters are hopeful the momentum Platner’s campaign generated can be carried into a possible replacement, while others are less optimistic, essentially making peace with another Collins term.   

The political newcomer had weathered a series of controversies during his campaign — including offensive online comments, a now-covered Nazi-linked tattoo and earlier accusations of unsettling behavior toward previous romantic partners. 

But the allegation of sexual assault, reported by Politico, resulted in the nominee rapidly losing support from both national and local Democrats. A source close to the campaign told Maine Morning Star early Wednesday that Platner’s top strategists had been urging him to drop out since that accusation.

Jenny Racicot, 41, told Politico she had an on-and-off relationship with Platner for more than two years before he entered her home in 2021 uninvited while intoxicated and forced himself on her while she repeatedly told him to stop. 

“I just want to make it clear, this was all false,” Platner said in the Wednesday video. “The things that have been claimed did not happen. It’s not real.” 

Much as he did during his primary night acceptance speech, Platner placed blame on the political establishment and corporate media.

“I learned about this through press inquiries, with no time to truly respond, no time for investigations before a corporate media system and the political establishment got to act as judge, jury, and execution,” Platner said. “Accusations are supposed to be the beginning of things, not the end.”

The accusation came exactly a week out from Maine’s ballot deadline. With Platner’s official exit from the race, the Maine Democratic Party must name a replacement by July 21. State law doesn’t specify what process the party has to use to replace him.

During an emergency meeting earlier Wednesday evening, state committee members voted in favor of using a convention process, including 500 delegates elected proportionally by county committees, along with the entire 100-person state committee, as first reported by the Bangor Daily News. 

Platner’s campaign and the state party have been dueling over what it should look like, with the party saying Platner will have no role in the decision but the campaign launching a survey of its volunteers Wednesday soliciting input. 

The selection process appears to be unprecedented. Chief Deputy with the Maine Secretary of State Department Katherine McBrien said she’s unaware of any instances of someone withdrawing from a race in Maine after winning the primary.

Within hours of the Politico story publishing, speculation was building over who could replace Platner. Several Democrats who recently lost the nomination for governor have said they’d consider Senate bids, as have two former Senate candidates, among others.