{"id":1144,"date":"2026-07-07T12:30:34","date_gmt":"2026-07-07T07:30:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=1144"},"modified":"2026-07-07T12:30:34","modified_gmt":"2026-07-07T07:30:34","slug":"dam-breaks-as-elected-dems-withdraw-support-urge-platner-to-drop-out-of-maine-senate-race","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=1144","title":{"rendered":"Dam Breaks As Elected Dems Withdraw Support, Urge Platner to Drop Out of Maine Senate Race"},"content":{"rendered":"<script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n\r\n<br><div id=\"article-content\">\n            \n\n\n\n\n<p>Immediately after <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2026\/07\/06\/graham-platner-sexual-assault-allegation-00987737\" target=\"_blank\">Politico<\/a> published a rape allegation against Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner Monday, elected Democrats began to withdraw their support, with party leaders urging Platner to step down immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<!-- \/wp:post-content -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been very clear that sexual assault or violence against women is a red line,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RoKhanna\/status\/2074242263710917062\" target=\"_blank\">tweeted<\/a> Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA). \u201cThese allegations are very serious and credible. Graham Platner should drop out from the race. I am withdrawing my endorsement.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cThe allegations against Graham Platner are troubling and deeply serious,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RubenGallego\/status\/2074242801953386923\" target=\"_blank\">said <\/a>Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ). \u201cI am rescinding my endorsement.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Khanna had been one of Platner\u2019s most steadfast supporters, appearing with him at a public event days after revelations that he\u2019d cheated on his wife and intimidated some of his former girlfriends were published. Gallego \u2014 who hired a crisis communications staffer after his best friend, former Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA), flamed out of the Calfornia governor\u2019s race with his own sexual assault allegations \u2014\u00a0is likely eager to distance himself.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>In a <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/ericmgarcia.bsky.social\/post\/3mpz6tmmqvk2m\" target=\"_blank\">joint statement<\/a>, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chair Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) called the allegations against Platner \u201cabsolutely unacceptable\u201d and said \u201cthe DSCC will not invest in the Maine Senate race if Platner remains on the ballot.\u201d The Maine Democratic Party too has called on Platner to leave the race, as has Hannah Pingree, the state\u2019s Democratic gubernatorial nominee.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>One of Platner\u2019s biggest Senate backers,  Bernie Sanders (I-VT), had yet to respond as of early Monday evening. His team did not immediately return TPM\u2019s request for comment.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Another high-profile progressive backer who campaigned with him, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), did. \u201cThere can be no tolerance for sexual assault,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cWith 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,\u201d she continued.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>In a <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/grahamformaine\/status\/2074214272628916296\" target=\"_blank\">video<\/a> posted Monday just minutes after the Politico story was published, Platner denied the allegations and said that he is \u201ctaking the time to reflect on the best path forward.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2026\/07\/06\/us\/graham-platner-racicot-allegation-maine-invs\" target=\"_blank\">CNN<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/investigations\/2026\/07\/06\/woman-alleges-graham-platner-democratic-candidate-us-senate-sexually-assaulted-her\/\" target=\"_blank\">Washington Post<\/a> put out their own versions of the story later on Monday evening. <\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Democrats don\u2019t have much \u201ctime to reflect,\u201d given the impossibly tight timeline they now face to replace Platner, should he formally drop out. Platner has until July 13 to withdraw and be replaced, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.maine.gov\/ethics\/deadlines\/all\" target=\"_blank\">according to the Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices<\/a>. The state party <a href=\"https:\/\/legislature.maine.gov\/statutes\/21-a\/title21-Asec374-A.html\" target=\"_blank\">then<\/a>, \u201cno later than 5 p.m. of the 4th Monday in July,\u201d has to name a replacement, making for a July 27 deadline.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Democrats, still scarred from 2024, now face a redux: If Platner bows out, the party will have to coalesce around some other candidate before the general election.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->          <\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n    window.fbAsyncInit = function() {\n      FB.init({\n        appId: \"101800829865996\",\n        xfbml: true,\n        version: ' v2.6'\n      });\n      window.fbAsyncInit.__didInit = true;\n    };\n    (function(d, s, id) {\n      var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];\n      if (d.getElementById(id)) {\n        return;\n      }\n      js = d.createElement(s);\n      js.id = id;\n      js.src = \"https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/sdk.js\";\n      fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);\n    }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));\n  <\/script>\r\n<br><script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Immediately after Politico published a rape allegation against Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner Monday, elected Democrats began to withdraw their support, with party leaders urging Platner to step down immediately. \u201cI\u2019ve been very clear that sexual assault or violence against women is a red line,\u201d tweeted Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA). \u201cThese allegations are very serious&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1145,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2279838896.jpg?w=804","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-political-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1144","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1144"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1144\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1145"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1144"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1144"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1144"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}