Democrat Quits Senate Race Amid Shocking Allegation

Graham Platner’s Senate campaign came crashing down Wednesday night after a bombshell rape allegation and a pileup of earlier controversies finally became too much for Democrats to ignore.

Platner, the scandal-plagued Democratic nominee in Maine, announced he was suspending his campaign just weeks after winning the June 9 primary in a landslide. His exit now clears the way for Maine Democrats to scramble for a replacement in one of the most important Senate races in the country.

Platner had been running against longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a high-stakes contest that could help determine whether the GOP keeps control of the Senate in November’s midterm elections. Republicans currently hold a narrow 53-47 majority, making Maine one of the Democrats’ top pickup targets.

But instead of gearing up for a general election fight, Democrats are now trying to clean up a political disaster.

“For the movement to continue, it can’t be me,” Platner said in a video posted to social media. “For that reason, we are suspending campaign operations.”

The announcement came just five days before a critical deadline under Maine law. If Platner had stayed in the race past 5 p.m. on Monday, July 13, Democrats would not have been able to replace him on the general election ballot. Because he dropped out before the deadline, the Maine Democratic Party can now name a new nominee. The party has until July 27 to make its selection.

Platner, a Marine Corps combat veteran and oyster farmer, had spent nearly a year running as an outsider populist. His campaign got a major boost last September when progressive icon Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont backed him. That support helped him build crowds, raise money and position himself as the anti-establishment candidate against Collins.

But the image collapsed fast.

Platner’s withdrawal came two days after Politico published a report featuring an allegation from his ex-girlfriend, Jenny Racicot, 41, who accused him of forcing her to have sex against her will about five years ago. Platner has denied the allegation.

“This is all false,” Platner said in his Wednesday video. “The things that have been claimed did not happen. It is not real.”

Racicot also spoke with CNN’s Jake Tapper and said that, “by dictionary definition,” Platner “raped” her.

“I thought, here’s a man who was drunk and who, by dictionary definition, raped me. And he’s blaming drunk women,” Racicot said.

According to Politico, Racicot alleged Platner came into her home uninvited and forced her to have unprotected sex despite her telling him to stop multiple times. She told the outlet he was “almost blackout drunk” at the time.

“I remember him grabbing my pelvis and being really forceful of me,” she said. “I remember the specific moment where I thought to myself, like, ‘This is no longer my choice.’”

The report also said a man Racicot dated afterward confirmed she told him about the alleged incident, and that emails between Racicot and her therapist also corroborated that she had discussed it.

Racicot said she delayed coming forward because she struggled with what she described as a “huge moral conflict” between supporting Platner’s politics and not supporting him “as a person.”

“I just want the truth out there,” she said. “I just want people to have a whole scope of who he is as a person.”

Platner rejected the claims in a statement to Politico.

“These allegations are troubling, serious, and false,” he said. “Any accusation of non-consensual behavior is categorically untrue.”

His campaign posted another video shortly after the Politico story was published, with Platner saying he would “reflect” on the best path forward.

“So, regardless of the inaccuracy of the reporting, but mindful the political reality it will inflict, we are taking the time to reflect on the best path forward for the state that I love, the people that I love, the movement I belong to, and the goal of defeating Susan Collins,” Platner said.

Then came another damaging allegation.

On Tuesday, The Washington Post reported that another ex-girlfriend, Lyndsey Fifield, 41, accused Platner of removing condoms during sex after she had explicitly told him to wear them. Fifield had previously accused Platner of physical misconduct during their relationship, alleging that he sometimes grabbed her hard enough to leave marks and that, in one incident, he twisted her arm behind her back, pushed her into a bedroom and held the door shut until she “calmed down.”

Platner’s campaign called Fifield’s latest allegations “categorically false and politically motivated,” pointing to her past work for the conservative Heritage Foundation.

In his Wednesday night video, Platner insisted he was not leaving the race because of the allegations themselves.

“We’re not suspending our campaign because of allegations,” he said. “We’re doing it because of structures that are being taken away from us by those in power.”

Platner accused party power brokers of using the allegations as a pretext to strip his campaign of what it needed to compete, including fundraising ability and access to voter data.

“Those in power who have the ability to do so are using these allegations as an excuse to take away all the things that we need to run a campaign,” he said.

That argument did not stop top Democrats from cutting him loose.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer called the Politico allegations “incredibly disturbing” and said “violence, abuse and sexual assault are absolutely unacceptable.” In a joint statement with DSCC Chair Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Schumer said Platner needed to “immediately withdraw” and allow Maine Democrats to choose a new nominee who could take on Collins.

The DSCC also made clear it would not invest in the Maine Senate race if Platner remained on the ballot.

Senate Majority PAC, the Schumer-aligned super PAC backing Democratic Senate candidates, said it was redirecting resources away from Maine in light of the allegations. The Maine Democratic Party also called on Platner to withdraw.

After Platner stepped aside, Schumer posted on X, “Democrats are going to defeat Susan Collins, win Maine, and take back the Senate.”

The DSCC said it would “work tirelessly to ensure the new Democratic nominee has the infrastructure and resources to immediately turn their focus to the general election.”

But the damage to Democrats’ Senate plans was already obvious.

Platner had become the all-but-certain nominee after two-term Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, who had support from Schumer and the Democratic establishment, suspended her own Senate bid earlier this year after trailing Platner in polling and fundraising. Now, with Platner gone, the party is back to square one in a race Democrats considered crucial to retaking the chamber.

The Maine Democratic Party said Tuesday night that officials were working “around the clock” to determine a replacement process. But the party also accused Platner and his team of trying “to put their thumb on the scale of what this process looks like.”

Platner’s team denied trying to put any “finger on the scale,” saying they had reached out to the party.

A few hours before Platner dropped out, the Maine Democratic Party announced it would hold a nominating convention to choose a new Senate nominee if he exited the race.

Platner made clear he wanted the process to be open and driven by Maine voters, not Washington insiders.

“What comes next needs to come from the people,” he said. “Needs to come from the people of Maine. Needs to come from the voters who on June 9… said no to this kind of politics.”

He added, “People in DC should stay in DC. Decisions should not be made in backrooms by people in places of political power.”

Still, the backlash from his own party was swift.

Rep. Ro Khanna of California, one of Platner’s most visible progressive allies, withdrew his endorsement.

“I’ve been very clear that sexual assault or violence against women is a red line,” Khanna wrote on X. “These allegations are very serious and credible. Graham Platner should drop out from the race. I am withdrawing my endorsement.”

Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona also rescinded his endorsement, calling the allegations “troubling and deeply serious.” Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who had endorsed and appeared with Platner, also dropped her support. Our Revolution, the progressive group founded by Sanders, withdrew its endorsement as well.

Sanders, who had campaigned with Platner during his “Fighting Oligarchy” tour, said Tuesday that he had spoken with Platner and recommended that he step aside.

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

Republicans wasted no time seizing on the collapse.

“Maine Democrats elected a rapist Nazi to be their nominee for Senate, and regardless of who they anoint next, Susan Collins will be re-elected in November,” National Republican Senatorial Committee Regional Press Secretary Samantha Cantrell said in a statement.

Alex Latcham, executive director of the Senate GOP-aligned Senate Leadership Fund, said the Democratic establishment had moved “at the 11th hour” to overturn the will of Maine voters in an effort to save its midterm strategy.

“Regardless of who Washington Democrats install, Senator Susan Collins will win in November,” Latcham said.

Sen. John Fetterman, the Pennsylvania Democrat who had been one of Platner’s loudest critics, was even blunter during an appearance on Fox News’ “Jesse Watters Primetime.”

“The trash took itself out tonight,” Fetterman said.

Collins, meanwhile, released a measured statement.

“These allegations are appalling,” she said. “Nevertheless, it is not up to me to choose the Democratic nominee for Senate.”

The rape allegation was the final blow to a campaign already drowning in controversy.

In the months before his primary win, Platner had been forced to defend old inflammatory posts from a now-deleted Reddit account. He also faced scrutiny over a tattoo on his chest that resembled a Nazi symbol. Platner said he got the skull-and-crossbones tattoo in 2007 while drinking with fellow Marines stationed in Croatia, and later covered it up after learning last year that it resembled a Nazi symbol.

Questions were later raised about his timeline regarding when he learned the tattoo’s meaning.

Reports also surfaced that Platner had exchanged sexually explicit messages with several women while married. Other allegations from former girlfriends described a history of rape fantasies, heavy drinking and violent episodes. Platner repeatedly denied allegations of violence.

One day before the Democratic primary, a former high-level staffer from Platner’s campaign wrote in a Washington Post op-ed that Platner “is not someone who would be good for Maine or for the country.”

Despite all that, Platner still captured the Democratic nomination, riding a wave of anti-establishment energy and support from progressives.

In his primary night victory speech, he tried to frame himself as a man who had changed.

“If you believe, as I do, that we can change our politics and change our country, then you must also believe that people can change,” Platner told supporters. “And the reason I believe that is because I have lived it. And the reason that I have lived it is because of my wife.”

Platner had also openly discussed his struggle with PTSD after three tours in Iraq with the Marines and one tour in Afghanistan with the Army National Guard. He apologized for the controversial Reddit posts after they resurfaced last fall soon after he launched his campaign.

But the apologies and explanations were not enough to save him.

Rumors that Platner might drop out began swirling over the weekend after multiple campaign events were canceled without a clear explanation. The Bangor Daily News reported that one organizer said an event had been canceled because Platner was “not feeling well.”

Conservative outlets and commentators quickly began speculating that something bigger was happening behind the scenes. By Wednesday night, those suspicions had been confirmed.

Platner’s political implosion leaves Democrats in a dangerous position in Maine. Two polls taken late last month showed a tight race, with a Fox News poll giving Collins a three-point edge and a New York Times/Siena survey showing Platner ahead by two points.

But Collins has survived tough races before. Six years ago, polling suggested she was headed for defeat, only for her to beat Democratic state House Speaker Sara Gideon by nine points.

Now Collins, a moderate Republican who has sometimes broken with President Donald Trump’s agenda, is running for a sixth term. Democrats had hoped Platner’s populist energy could help them finally topple her.

Instead, his campaign ended in scandal, leaving Democrats scrambling, Republicans pouncing and one of the most important Senate races in the country suddenly thrown into chaos.