Tuesday, June 9, 2026

Graham Platner's big moment is here

Primary day is finally upon us in Maine, where one of the most-watched races of the cycle is playing out.

Graham Platner is poised to win the nomination for U.S. Senate virtually uncontested. His closest Democratic rival, Gov. Janet Mills, effectively dropped out in April leaving the 41-year-old oysterman the presumptive nominee.

Platner's nomination is causing panic among the D.C. consultant class, who for all their talk largely understand that his victory represents a major rebuke of the party establishment in Washington.

An onslaught of negative media reports about the Army veteran's past comments on Reddit and a tattoo resembling a Nazi "Totenkopf" symbol which he covered up and apologized for getting created the impression that Platner was the target of a smear campaign directed by party leaders due to his progressive credentials and opposition to Israel's war in Gaza.

True or not, the image only seemed to help Platner as he remained confidently ahead of Mills, the sitting governor of the state and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer's recruit, in all polling.

But he now steps onto the main stage, and his main foes are no longer the hand-wringing Democrats in Washington. It's Sen. Susan Collins, his opponent, and the veritable swarm of ad money and GOP operatives ready to defend the most important Republican incumbency of the cycle.

Ahead of Tuesday's primary Platner faced a new report in The New York Times investigating his past relationships. A number of ex-girlfriends described a troubling pattern of "unsettling" behavior to the Times, including one woman who said some interactions with him left her "afraid", alleging that he would sometimes grab her hard enough to leave bruises. Platner has firmly denied this.

With his race moving into the general election stage, Platner is about to face the spotlight like never before.

Election season is starting to heat up. The big day is now just five months away, and Republicans currently find themselves much further on their back feet than they ever anticipated, thanks to Donald Trump's war with Iran and his efforts to purge any hints of disloyalty from their ranks.

Read more here. 

By John Bowden

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