The Democrat Party’s best shot at flipping a Senate seat in the Northeast just got a whole lot more complicated.
New allegations are piling up against Maine Democrat Senate candidate Graham Platner faster than his own party can keep up with them.
And Republican senators are unloading on Platner in ways that have Democrats running for cover ahead of the primary.
A Record That Would Sink Anyone Else
Platner has spent months trying to outrun a list of controversies that would have ended most political careers before they started. The scrutiny began with thousands of now-deleted Reddit posts that resurfaced after he launched his Senate campaign, including posts in which Platner referred to himself as a “communist” and “socialist” and endorsed the slogan “all cops are b—–ds.”
Last fall, the campaign’s political director, finance director, and campaign manager all resigned following those revelations. The posts included content downplaying sexual assault, criticizing police and rural Americans, and one in which he wrote that he “became a communist.” Platner apologized for the comments about sexual assault and dismissed others as “stupid joke comments,” attributing the posts to his struggles with post-traumatic stress and depression stemming from his service in Iraq and Afghanistan.
A recent report from the New York Times features explosive excerpts from Platner’s ex-girlfriends, who alleged that he hates women, detailed fantasies about both rape and killing, and was aware that his chest tattoo resembled the Totenkopf, a symbol used by Nazi death camp guards, despite having previously denied knowing about the association.
One woman, Lyndsey Fifield, recounted an argument when they dated during which Platner allegedly “twisted her arm behind her back, shoved her into a bedroom and held the door closed from the other side so she couldn’t get out, telling her to remain there until she was ‘calm.'” Platner has strongly denied the allegations of physical abuse, according to reporting from The National Desk.
Platner’s wife, Amy Gertner, discovered text exchanges between Platner and multiple women just months after they were married in 2024. Platner’s campaign confirmed the sexually explicit messages to Politico after The Wall Street Journal reported that Gertner discovered the texts soon after they were wed and warned a campaign aide about potential political liability.
And then there are the posts about the military. In one deleted Reddit post from April 2019, Platner wrote that the Army “is absolute trash” and called it “full of fat, lazy trash who would rather not be in uniform.”
Republicans Don’t Hold Back
Senate Republicans went straight at Platner when Fox News Digital asked for their reaction this week.
Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) told Fox News Digital, “I think it is really sad when you have someone who’s a self-described communist, who put a Nazi tattoo on himself, to see so many Senate Democrats supporting him. That should be beyond the pale.”
Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) said, “I think it’s going to be interesting to see if the voters of Maine are able to see through the lies that Graham Platner is planting.” He added that Platner is “trying to excuse himself for behavior that is totally unconscionable.”
Hagerty also said, “I can’t imagine that Mainers want to be represented by somebody like that, when they have an option to continue working with Susan Collins, who is working her heart out to represent Maine every day.”
Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) was even blunter. “You got to really feel sorry for the true Democrats in this country,” Tuberville said. “They have no representation. Now they’re taking these people who absolutely have no business representing anybody.”
Tuberville also said, “This Platner guy can’t beat Susan Collins, number one. But to even have him in the race is embarrassing — to me — for Maine and for our country.”
Democrats Dodge, Deflect, and Disappear
The silence from the other side of the aisle is telling.
When Fox News Digital asked Democrat senators whether they still supported Platner, some were reluctant to weigh in. Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) responded, “Who told you I was supporting him?” When asked if he does support him, he replied, “I don’t vote in that state.”
Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) offered only this: “The people of Maine are going to have to make up their minds.”
Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) said, “I’m gonna take a look at the race. I hadn’t paid any attention. We’ve been busy on other fronts so, but I will look at it now.”
Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) said simply, “I don’t know. I have a few other things on my mind.”
But some Democrats haven’t been so careful. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) told reporters outside the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee building, “I’m very confident we are going to win Maine.” Pressed on whether she had confidence in Platner specifically, Gillibrand replied, “I do. I have confidence that we are going to win Maine and I have no doubt.”
And Chuck Schumer? Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who had previously backed Maine Governor Janet Mills before she suspended her campaign amid low poll numbers and dwindling funds, doubled down on his support for Platner. When asked about the Platner scandal at a press conference, Schumer said he had met with the candidate and had “endorsed” him. “We’re going to beat Susan Collins and take back the Senate,” Schumer repeated in response to various Platner questions from reporters.
The Bigger Picture
Many Democrats, including Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Schumer, continue backing Platner as Democrats view Maine’s Republican-held Senate seat as one of their top pickup opportunities in the midterms. If elected, Platner would face incumbent Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) in November’s midterms.
The seat matters enough to them that they’re willing to overlook just about anything. Even *The View* co-host Sunny Hostin, who called Platner “a liar, a racist, an antisemite” and “a homophobe,” still said she supported his candidacy because Democrats need to win back Congress.
That’s the calculation being made in plain sight. Win the seat, worry about the candidate later.
Despite the plethora of scandals and allegations coming out nearly daily on Platner, he still remains the frontrunner in the Democrat primary. The party that spent years lecturing the country about character and fitness for office is now lining up behind a candidate whose own supporters on cable television call him a liar and a racist, because the math on Senate control matters more to them than anything else.
Republicans hold a 53-47 Senate advantage right now. The Maine race is considered crucial to Democrats’ hopes of flipping the Senate, but Platner’s web of controversies is overshadowing other issues.
But the character problem doesn’t go away just because party leaders decide to look past it. Voters in Maine will have their say in the primary, and then general election voters will have theirs. Whatever Schumer and Sanders are selling, Susan Collins has represented Maine since 1997 and has survived every challenge thrown at her.
Tuberville put it plainly. The guy can’t beat Collins. And Democrats know it — they just can’t say it out loud.
Sources: Fox News Digital, The New York Times, NBC News, Politico, The Wall Street Journal, The National Desk