Senator Elizabeth Warren endorsed Graham Platner in Maine's Democratic Senate primary on Thursday, intensifying the race against Governor Janet Mills. Platner also has support from Senator Bernie Sanders, while Mills is backed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) announced her endorsement of populist veteran Graham Platner in a video on Thursday, praising him as the real deal. “Graham Platner is the real deal,” Warren said. “He’s a fighter, and he’s ready to take that fight to Washington.” She added that Platner has the grit to fight for what is right and exhibits the fighting spirit the Democratic Party needs now more than ever. Warren argued Platner could help Democrats reclaim the Senate majority, which Republicans currently hold 53-47 ahead of the November general election against incumbent Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), who has served since 1997 and won re-election in 2020 with 51% of the vote against Democrat Sara Gideon’s 42% share. The Cook Political Report rates the general election as a toss-up. The primary is set for June 9, with polling averages from RealClearPolling showing Platner leading Mills. Platner’s campaign has faced scrutiny over past controversies, including 2013 Reddit posts where he called himself a communist and made demeaning comments about women, such as urging them to act like adults and avoid getting too intoxicated. He apologized for these remarks in October and responded to a recent Mills campaign ad by resharing the video, stating on X that he was horrified by the comments and did not recognize the person who posted them. Critics also questioned a tattoo Platner had, which some said resembled a Nazi symbol; he later covered it. The ad features a woman saying, “Just no way I could vote for you.” Samantha Cantrell, a spokesperson for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, commented that Schumer’s handpicked candidate, Mills, is so unpopular that Warren endorsed Platner.
