{"id":2545,"date":"2026-07-10T21:08:23","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T21:08:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2545"},"modified":"2026-07-10T21:08:23","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T21:08:23","slug":"graham-platner-officially-drops-out-of-the-maine-senate-race","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2545","title":{"rendered":"Graham Platner officially drops out of the Maine Senate race"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Embattled Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner on Friday officially dropped out of the race, paving the way for Democrats to select a new nominee just days before the deadline.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI write to formally withdraw my candidacy for United States Senate,\u201d Platner wrote in a letter to Maine\u2019s division of elections that he shared on X.<\/p>\n

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Maine\u2019s Secretary of State office, which oversees elections, confirmed receipt of the letter.<\/p>\n

Platner announced on Wednesday that he planned to withdraw from the race, but he had yet to file the necessary paperwork to do so.<\/p>\n

Democrats have until July 27 at 5 p.m. ET to find a replacement to face Republican Sen. Susan Collins in November in one of the nation\u2019s most competitive Senate races. Candidates must formally declare by Wednesday 15 at 5 p.m.<\/p>\n

Candidates began jockeying to replace Platner last week, even before he announced his exit following a new sexual assault allegation against him made by a former girlfriend. The woman, Jenny Racicot, told Politico and CNN that he forced her to have sex with him in 2021, a claim he has rebuked as \u201ccategorically false.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cWhat comes next needs to come from the people, needs to come from the people of Maine,\u201d Platner said in a video announcing his campaign\u2019s suspension. \u201cIt needs to be open, transparent and democratic. It needs to be reflecting the will and the values of the people that built this movement.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe that for the movement to continue, it can\u2019t be me. And for that reason, we are suspending campaign operations,\u201d he added. \u201cWe\u2019re not doing it because of the allegations; we\u2019re doing it because of the structures that are being taken away from us by those in power.\u201d<\/p>\n

At least half a dozen candidates have already jumped into the contest to replace Platner \u2014 including several who ran, and lost, in the state\u2019s gubernatorial and Senate primaries this year, and one person who ran \u2014 and lost \u2014 to Collins in 2014.<\/p>\n

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