Platner faces mounting calls to withdraw from Maine Senate race after assault allegation

Platner must withdraw by July 13 to be removed from Maine ballot

Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner faced calls to drop out of the race Monday after a woman he previously dated accused him of sexual assault in a series of interviews with Politico, which were published Monday.

Jenny Racicot, 41, alleged that after an on-and-off relationship with Platner for more than two years, he entered her home in Maine uninvited and sexually assaulted her. Racicot said Platner appeared to be very intoxicated, and that she halted contact after telling him the encounter was not consensual.

Racicot told Politico she felt compelled to publicly speak of her experience because of the reaction to a story published by the New York Times, in which several women alleged Platner mistreated them. That report, published last month before the primary, detailed accounts from three former girlfriends who accused him of erratic and angry behavior. Racicot said she was one of the women interviewed by the Times but did not want to go public with her specific claims at the time because she did not want to be known as a rape victim.

Platner denied the allegation in a video statement on social media, calling it “categorically false” but said he was “taking the time to reflect on the best path forward for the state that I love, the people that I love, the movement I belong to and the goal of defeating Susan Collins.”

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand said in a joint statement: “The allegations reported today are incredibly disturbing – violence, abuse and sexual assault are absolutely unacceptable.” The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which provides millions of dollars in support to party candidates, said it “will not invest in the Maine Senate race if Platner remains on the ballot.”

The list of Democrats calling on him to drop out grew Monday night to include Senators Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker, and Elissa Slotkin. Three supporters withdrew their endorsements: Congressman Ro Khanna, who called the report “serious and credible” and said Platner should drop out, and Senators Martin Heinrich and Ruben Gallego, who described the allegations as “appalling” and “troubling and deeply serious,” respectively.

The Maine Democratic Party also called on him to step aside. In a statement, the party said: “Over the past several weeks, multiple women have made serious, credible allegations against Graham Platner. Today’s statements take those allegations even further. Maine Democratic Party leadership is calling on Graham Platner to withdraw as the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate.”

Platner’s campaign postponed several events scheduled for this week.

The race between Platner and incumbent Republican Susan Collins, who has held the seat for three decades, is one of several pivotal to Democrats’ chances of flipping control of the Senate. Platner must withdraw by July 13 in order for his name to be removed from the state’s ballot and replaced by another candidate.

The new allegation adds to a series of controversies that have surrounded Platner’s campaign. Reports emerged about a tattoo on his chest that resembled a Nazi symbol known as the “Totenkopf” used by Nazi forces during World War Two. Platner said he covered it up and explained he got the tattoo while drinking with Marines in Croatia in 2007.

Old Reddit posts showed Platner saying victims of sexual assault should “take some responsibility for themselves” and not get so intoxicated. After the posts were unearthed, Platner asked voters for forgiveness, saying in an ad: “Maine, I am asking you not to judge me for the worst thing I said on the internet, on my worst day 14 years ago, but who I am today and the kind of senator I promise to be.”

Platner also acknowledged exchanging sexually explicit texts on a messaging app with women outside his marriage. In an interview with MS Now, he said: “At the beginning of our marriage, I made mistakes, and Amy held me accountable for them, and we worked through them, and the work that we did made our marriage significantly stronger.”

Despite the controversies, Platner won the Democratic primary in June. The party now must decide whether to replace him before the July 13 ballot deadline.