Graham Platner announced Wednesday he’s ending his Senate campaign, capping a chaotic few days of uncertainty and Democratic infighting and leaving the party without a candidate in the vitally important Maine race this fall.Subscribe to read this story ad-freeGet unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.The announcement by the populist progressive came after a woman he dated accused him of sexual assault in 2021, causing his support to hemorrhage even among top Democratic allies, who rescinded their endorsements and called on him to drop out.In a video message posted on X, Platner denied the allegation as “false” but said it has “placed an immense amount of weight” on him as he only has until Monday to decide whether to continue his candidacy.He said if he continued, he’d lose his ability to fundraise, access voter data or run a campaign.“What comes next needs to come from the people, needs to come from the people of Maine,” Platner said.
“It needs to be open, transparent and democratic.It needs to be reflecting the will and the values of the people that built this movement.”“We believe that for the movement to continue, it can’t be me.
And for that reason, we are suspending campaign operations,” Platner continued.“We’re not doing it because of the allegations, we’re doing it because of the structures that are being taken away from us by those in power.”The Maine Democratic Party now has the option to replace Platner on the ballot by a July 27 deadline set by state law.
It is unclear how the party will go about selecting a candidate in that compressed time frame.Many are already jockeying to be the candidate to face Republican Sen.
Susan Collins, who is seeking a sixth six-year term.Earlier on Wednesday evening, the state party said it had decided to hold a nominating convention to pick a replacement candidate and plans to “announce the full timeline” as well as details and requirements for contenders.It p...