Maine Democratic Senate nominee withdraws after assault claim

Graham Platner, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Maine, has ended his campaign in the wake of a sexual assault allegation, forcing his party to find a replacement candidate by July 27. Platner announced the suspension of his campaign operations on Wednesday, July 8, and formally withdrew on Friday, July 10.

The decision followed a report by CNN and Politico in which a woman, Jenny Racicot, accused Platner of raping her in 2021 while they were casually dating. Platner has denied the allegation. In a video statement, he framed his exit as a result of structural pressure from the Democratic establishment, which he said used the accusations to undermine his campaign by cutting off access to fundraising and voter data.

Platner’s candidacy, which began as an experiment by a group of progressive outsiders, was marked by controversy long before the recent allegation. He faced scrutiny over a Nazi tattoo on his chest, which he claimed he was unaware of at the time he got it, as well as a history of what former girlfriends described as unsettling and misogynistic behavior. Despite these issues, he won the Democratic primary on June 9 with over 72 percent of the vote, defeating...