Democratic Lawmakers Frantically Jump Ship on Platner After Latest Bombshell

Melanie Stetson Freeman/The Christian Science Monitor via AP

Within hours of new allegations emerging against Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner, Democrats began throwing him under the bus and revoking their endorsements.

A bombshell report in Politico on Monday detailed accusations from Jenny Racicot, a 41-year-old Maine resident who said she had an on-again, off-again relationship with Platner for more than two years, until he assaulted her. The report details her experience:

He entered her rural Maine home uninvited one night in late 2021, deeply intoxicated, and forced himself on her while she repeatedly told him to stop. She said she cut off contact with him after telling him the encounter was not consensual.

In a video address, Platner vehemently denied the allegations but announced he would be hitting pause on his Senate campaign to “reflect on the best path forward.”

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) was among the first Democratic lawmakers to pull their endorsements of Platner.

“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.”

In January, MS Now anchor Elise Jordan pressed Khanna on what it would take for him to withdraw his support of scandal-riddled Platner, to which Khanna responded, “If there was some credible accusation or allegation of sexual assault, domestic violence, or rape, I would withdraw my endorsement.”

Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), who is under federal investigation for alleged campaign finance violations, also announced, “I am rescinding my endorsement,” calling the allegations “troubling and deeply serious.”

Gallego previously defended Platner amid May reports that Platner, who is married, had sent sexually explicit texts to women.

“Americans are really, really hurt by the fact that gas is still high. Food is still high. They can’t buy a home. You can’t afford rent,” he told the press. “They’re not going to care about text messages and everything else like that that happened years ago, especially when it was worked out between spouses.”

Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM), who also endorsed Platner, told reporters, “These are very serious allegations and they should be treated as such.”

“I endorsed Graham Platner because I believed he would fight for working people and stand up to a system that too often protects the powerful,” Heinrich later wrote on X. “The allegations reported today are appalling. If accurate, they reveal conduct that is completely unacceptable and incompatible with the integrity we should demand from those seeking public office. I can no longer support Graham Platner’s candidacy. He should step aside.”

NOTUS’s Igor Bobic reported that Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), who heavily endorsed Platner, has now called on him to step aside, saying:

Now more than ever we need leaders in Washington who reflect our values. There can be no tolerance for sexual assault. Working families are counting on Democrats to win the Senate election in Maine to unrig our economy and hold Donald Trump accountable. With so much at stake, the best path forward is for Graham Platner to step aside as the Democratic nominee and address these serious allegations outside this Senate race.

The Senate Majority PAC, a Democratic super PAC, said in a statement shared to X that it will no longer funnel resources into Platner’s campaign and called on him to withdraw.

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