Politics
Our political journalists are based in the Maine State House and have deep source networks across the partisan spectrum in communities all over the state. Their coverage aims to cut through major debates and probe how officials make decisions. Read more Politics coverage here.
While fervent Maine progressives appear unshaken by the latest national stories on Graham Platner’s personal life, Democrats on the ballot with him Tuesday are more cautious.
Several candidates for governor and Congress have either dodged questions on Platner or offered more measured support than in earlier months as the oyster farmer and military veteran is poised to become the Democratic U.S. Senate nominee. Revelations that Platner sent sexually explicit messages to multiple women early in his marriage and was accused by ex-girlfriends of toxic behavior sparked new questions in Maine and Washington, D.C.
The cautious support for him among some Maine Democrats is at odds with his strong continued grassroots backing. But it underscores the stakes of several midterm contests just as Platner pushes for a working-class movement to oust Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins in one of the biggest races in the country.
“I think the women were very brave to speak up. They deserve to be heard,” former House Speaker Hannah Pingree, a Democratic gubernatorial candidate said Friday. “I also think it’s the people of Maine who need to hear the explanation. Graham needs to make that case — not me, not the media, not a surrogate.”
Pingree, who came out on top over Shah in a ranked-choice simulation in a poll last week, is part of a Platner-backed ranked-choice alliance with former state Senate President Troy Jackson and Secretary of State Shenna Bellows.
When BDN shines a light, policymakers act. Make a gift to help our reporters keep Maine’s leaders informed. Make a donation now.
That underscores the ties between Platner and other candidates down the ballot. Shah was among the many Democrats who endorsed Platner when he became the presumptive nominee after Gov. Janet Mills suspended her Senate campaign in late April. David Costello, the party’s 2024 Senate nominee, is on the ballot as a longshot candidate.
Shah said over the weekend that he read the latest story with what he called “serious allegations” about Platner’s past behavior. But he said he hadn’t had a chance to speak with the Senate candidate and declined to comment further.
“That is a question for Maine voters to decide,” he said when asked whether the news would undercut Platner’s chances against the five-term incumbent Collins.
Jackson told reporters at a Bar Harbor rally with Platner Friday that he hadn’t read the latest stories on his progressive counterpart. “People should always be concerned” about candidates’ track records, he said. But he supports Platner because “he cares about the same things I do,” particularly boosting Mainers’ economic opportunities and health care, he said.
Bellows’ campaign did not respond to a question about Platner. Bellows and Jackson have the strongest relationship with Platner among the gubernatorial candidates, having appeared at multiple events with him.
National Republicans are trying to make Platner an issue in the four-way Democratic primary for the 2nd Congressional District seat being vacated by Rep. Jared Golden, with the party’s campaign arm singling out State Auditor Matt Dunlap, who appeared with Platner at a Bar Harbor rally on Friday.
“Our charge going forward is to stand up for the working families … and bring them back to the center of the things we care about,” Dunlap said.
State Sen. Joe Baldacci, D-Bangor, who’s running for the 2nd Congressional District seat, didn’t directly respond to the latest controversies, which followed news in the fall of a Nazi-linked tattoo and offensive old social media posts on women, Black people and rural Mainers. Baldacci told reporters Monday that he’s focused on his race.
“I think this race is also important to the Democratic Party and the country,” he said at a news conference in Hermon. “I wish everyone else well.”
Jordan Wood, the 2nd Congressional District candidate who previously called on Platner to drop out after the controversies in the fall, noted his endorsement after Mills dropped out during a news conference in Bangor Monday.
“I have read some of the news stories late last week,” he said. “Graham and the campaign have said they’re not true. I haven’t spoken to Graham, but I expect to talk to him before tomorrow.”
A spokesperson for energy executive Angus King III, another gubernatorial candidate, recently responded to questions on Platner by saying the campaign is focused on the primary. The spokesperson pointed to King’s statement after Mills suspended her bid, praising the governor’s public service while saying he looked “forward to working with our presumptive nominee Graham Platner to bring people together and make sure we win in November.”
Platner’s campaign points to a string of news stories highlighting voters sticking with him. Platner says his private life has been “weaponized” while Collins’ public actions have received little scrutiny. His campaign says it recorded its biggest fundraising day since Mills dropped out in the 24 hours following Thursday’s New York Times’ report on his relationships.
Three of his exes alleged toxic behavior, including one who is a former Republican operative who alleged he’d been physically threatening but did not hit her. Platner denied that he’d ever been violent, and the Times also interviewed women from his past who said he was a good partner and that they remain friends with him.
The candidate also received a show of support from Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, a rising Democrat who was a special guest at a virtual fundraiser Sunday evening. He has been endorsed by a number of progressives including Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, and Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts. No major Democrats have dropped their support.
“I do think that he’s changed and he’s apologized,” Sylvia Boyer, 66, of Ellsworth, told the Bangor Daily News after Thursday’s report on Platner’s past relationships. “Republicans have more baggage and they’re acting like [Platner’s] the worst criminal in the world.”