Graham Platner is returning to Maine early from Washington after meeting with Senate Democrats on Tuesday due to a growing media presence at his family home and restaurant, a source familiar with the situation said.
Platner, an oyster farmer and Marine veteran from Sullivan, is expected to win the Democratic nomination next week for the right to challenge five-term Republican Sen. Susan Collins in November, a race national Democrats have identified as critical to flipping the Senate.
His return comes amid a swirl of controversy. Over the weekend, The Wall Street Journal and New York Times reported that Platner sent sexually explicit text messages to multiple women early in his marriage. His wife, Amy Gertner, learned of the messages months after their 2023 wedding, saying they entered counseling and have worked on their marriage.
The sexting revelations followed a series of earlier controversies, including a Nazi-linked tattoo Platner has since covered and offensive social media posts about women, Black people and rural Mainers. But his campaign exited that October maelstrom and became a progressive movement. Gov. Janet Mills ended her rival primary campaign in April.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, helped recruit Mills but embraced Platner. The two met in Washington on Tuesday. He stood by the candidate, though he sidestepped questions about the controversies with an oft-repeated line.
“I met with Graham Platner today. We’re going to beat Susan Collins and take back the Senate,” Schumer said repeatedly when pressed.
Other Democrats have also rallied around Platner, arguing voters are focused on kitchen-table issues rather than the candidate’s past. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, told reporters Tuesday that Platner is “talking about the needs of working families.”
Republicans have sought to capitalize on the controversies. The Republican National Committee called Platner “morally bankrupt” and accused Democratic leaders of having no red line with the candidate.
