Graham Platner withdraws from Senate race over sexual assault allegations
Democrat Graham Platner has suspended his campaign against Sen. Susan Collins for the Maine Senate seat following sexual assault accusations.
- At the county nominating convention on July 18 and 19, Mr. Jackson received 481 of the 500 delegates who would vote for a new candidate at the July 25 nominating convention.
- Secretary of State Shena Bellows withdrew Sunday morning, followed by former Maine CDC director Nirav Shah and former congressional aide Jordan Wood Sunday night.
- Delegates are not required to endorse Mr. Jackson at the convention, but his dominant performance suggests he will win the nomination.
Former Maine Senate President Troy Jackson appears almost certain to be the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate to replace oyster farmer Graham Platner after his main opponent resigned over the weekend.
According to Jackson’s campaign, at the July 18 and 19 county nominating conventions, Jackson received at least 481 of the 500 delegates who will vote for a new candidate at the July 25 nominating convention. The winning candidate must receive a majority of the 600 delegate votes at the convention.
As he gathered delegates, his main competitors ended their campaigns.
Maine Secretary of State Shena Bellows withdrew Sunday morning, followed by former Maine CDC Director Nirav Shah, former Congressional aide Jordan Wood, and on Sunday evening, Maine Beer Co. co-founder Dan Kleban.
Mr. Shah, Mr. Wood and Mr. Kleban supported Mr. Jackson’s resignation.
“After nearly 30 years, Susan Collins has given Maine more excuses than independence. That’s why I’m canceling my Senate campaign today and endorsing Troy Jackson,” Shah said in a statement posted on social media on July 19. “The Maine Democratic Party is united, angry and energized.”
Jackson thanked them all on social media.
“Now is the time for all of us to come together and build the broadest possible coalition to defeat Susan Collins,” Jackson said.
Jackson will replace Platner, who withdrew from the race on July 10 following allegations of sexual assault, which Platner denies. Democrats want to flip the seat currently held by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) to take control of the U.S. Senate, where Republicans hold a slim majority.
Delegates are not required to endorse Mr. Jackson at the convention, but his dominant performance suggests he will win the nomination, especially with his main competitors out of the race. Seven other candidates remain, but they are less well known. To officially qualify, all candidates must collect at least 500 signatures by July 20th at 11:59 p.m.
Who is Troy Jackson?
Jackson is a lumberjack from Allagash. Mr. Platner was already seen as the front-runner to replace Mr. Platner when he entered the race, local political commentators said.
Jackson served as president of the Maine Senate from 2018 to 2024, but lost gubernatorial races in 2014 and 2026, and lost to Hannah Pingree in this year’s primary.
Mr. Jackson and Mr. Platner announced their mutual support earlier this year, and Mr. Jackson’s gubernatorial bid has attracted support from labor leaders, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Ro Khanna, among others. Mr. Jackson is endorsed by Our Revolution, a grassroots political action group that grew out of Mr. Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign.
Jim Melcher, a political science professor at the University of Maine at Farmington, told USA TODAY in an interview in early July: “I think Troy Jackson is the closest thing to Platner in terms of populism, criticizing corporations and emphasizing labor unions.” “Platner’s base would be the happiest with acquiring Jackson.”
