Graham Plattner, Democratic U.S. Senate candidate for Maine, during a primary election night event at the Blue Hill YMCA in Blue Hill, Maine, U.S., on Tuesday, June 9, 2026.
Graeme Sloane Bloomberg | getty images
Democratic Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner said he intends to drop out of the race on Wednesday after a woman accused him of sexually assaulting her in 2021, causing a major split with his closest allies.
Plattner’s fall marks a seismic shift in the 2026 midterm elections, as Democrats try to wrest control of Congress from Republicans and weaken President Donald Trump’s grip on power. Flipping the Maine seat held by five-term Republican Senator Susan Collins is crucial to those ambitions, and Democrats in the state now must field a new candidate with less than four months until Election Day.
Plattner, an oyster businessman and military veteran, said Wednesday he is “suspending campaign operations” because his endorsements have dried up and national fundraisers have threatened to drain money directly from his campaign.
Plattner said, “We recognize that in order to continue the movement, it can’t be me.” “I intend to file my paperwork to withdraw. The process needs to be assured that what comes next will reflect the Mainers who came out on June 9 and showed they are desperate for a different kind of politics.”
one in Direct-to-camera videoPlattner said his decision to withdraw was “certainly” not an admission of guilt, but a reflection of the reality he now faces. He has denied claims made by his girlfriend Jenny Racicot, who dated Plattner and told Politico that he forced himself on her while heavily intoxicated in 2021.
“We did it the right way, we built a campaign, we engaged in electoral politics, we inspired people, we united,” he said. “We did it the way we were told we should make changes, and we won, and now they won’t let us do it. Not if it’s me.”
His fall from grace is a tremendous swing-and-miss by Democrats, who once hoped that the fiery, progressive Mainer could help the party reconnect with disaffected blue-collar voters who were attracted to Trump. And his campaign’s implosion now jeopardizes Democrats’ hopes for control of the Senate by pushing the must-win state into difficult territory.
Maine Democratic Party members voted Wednesday night to hold a nominating convention to select Plattner’s replacement. The party said it would provide more details about the conference in the coming days. Maine law says the party can place him on the ballot until July 27.
Several candidates have already entered the race to replace him, although the process for nominating a new candidate remains largely unclear.
Maine Beer Co. founder Dan Kleban, who ran for the seat in the Democratic primary earlier this year, said Wednesday he will try again for the nomination.
Kleban said, “We are all sick and tired of a system that is rigged with corporate interests, and we have had enough interference from Washington establishment insiders and New York City consultants trying to decide who represents us.” “I’m ready to fight for Mainers and bring a new generation of leadership to Washington.”
Maine Secretary of State Shenae Bellows, who recently lost the state’s gubernatorial primary, also said she would consider entering the contest. Bellows ran against Collins in 2014 and lost by more than 30 percentage points, but the field is far more favorable for Democrats this cycle.
Nirav Shah, a public health official and runner-up for governor, has also expressed interest in entering the ring.
And Troy Jackson, the former Maine Senate leader from rural Aroostook County who was a close ally of Plattner until the latest allegations, has already made an exploratory bid to potentially replace him at the top of the ticket.
Jackson publicized a poll on Wednesday that showed her with a lead over Collins, and Plattner fits the framework she created with her candidacy most easily.