Two top Democrat leaders who were hesitant to endorse embattled Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner by name amid his controversies finally relented Tuesday night after he cruised to victory in his primary election.House Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen.Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., issued a seemingly half-hearted joint statement backing Platner as he continues to face heat stemming from a multitude of scandals."Over the past year, we have created a path to win a Democratic Senate majority and put a stop to the chaos and damage of the Trump administration by defeating the Republicans who enable his harmful agenda," they wrote in a statement issued by the Democrat Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) just after Platner was declared the winner.Graham Platner addresses the crowd at his watch party after winning the Democratic nomination for U.S.
Senate at a YMCA in Blue Hill, Maine, on June 9, 2026.Platner will face Republican Sen.
Susan Collins in the election for the seat.(Matthew Symons for Fox News Digital)"In November, Maine voters will elect Graham Platner, and we will win a Senate majority," they concluded.In the statement, the New York lawmakers attempted to paint moderate Sen.
Susan Collins, R-Maine, as a radical pro-Trump Republican despite her several breaks with the president."Susan Collins has never been more vulnerable after she voted with Trump 96 percent of the time, confirmed his far-right judicial nominees, and took millions from special interests while voting to rip health care away from Mainers," they listed.SCANDAL-PLAGUED PLATNER CAPTURES DEMOCRATIC SENATE NOMINATIONLast week, Platner met with Gillibrand and Schumer, among other Democrats, during a crisis trip to Washington, D.C., in the midst of his latest scandal, which, at the time, was related to revelations of an account on a controversial messaging app. After that meeting, Gillibrand refused to say whether she still supported the progressive candidate."I'm very confident we ...