{"id":4730,"date":"2026-07-10T22:05:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T22:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=4730"},"modified":"2026-07-10T22:05:00","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T22:05:00","slug":"graham-platner-withdraws-from-maine-senate-race-kicking-off-democrats-quest-for-nominee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=4730","title":{"rendered":"Graham Platner withdraws from Maine Senate race, kicking off Democrats\u2019 quest for nominee"},"content":{"rendered":"<article>\n<div>\n<p><span>PORTLAND, Maine (AP) \u2014 Graham Platner on Friday submitted his paperwork to formally withdraw from Maine\u2019s U.S. Senate race, officially ending an upstart yet troubled campaign whose dissolution threatens Democrats\u2019 pursuit of chamber control.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=4728\">DHS was granted $20M for body cameras. ICE agents in fatal Houston shooting had none.<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>Platner\u2019s paperwork was received by the Maine secretary of state\u2019s office and reflected shortly thereafter in its online withdrawal list.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>In a letter to the secretary of state\u2019s office, which Platner also posted on social media, he wrote that the Mainers who had nominated him \u201cvoted for a new kind of politics\u201d that is \u201crepresentative of people down here in the real world \u2014 not billionaires, oligarchs, or the political establishment.\u201d It was the same outsider chord that had been a trademark of his tumultuous campaign, in which Platner drew backing from progressive leaders including Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna of California.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p><span>\u201cI seek to further the movement we have built together and the future we believe in,\u201d he went on, without detailing what that meant.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Maine is considered a key state for control of the narrowly divided Senate, and Democrats were desperate for a candidate capable of defeating Republican Sen. Susan Collins.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The formal withdrawal comes two days after Platner said he would quit the race, facing an allegation of sexual assault that he has denied. Maine Democrats are seeking a new nominee, and several hopefuls have already begun jockeying for position.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=4726\">In replacing Platner, Democrats are haunted by Biden-Harris switch<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>State law includes a provision for Democrats to replace Platner before the general election but the replacement must by named by July 27.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Just before Platner\u2019s Wednesday announcement, more than 100 state Democratic Party committee members signed off on holding a nominating convention, in the event of his withdrawal, to choose the nominee. The state party has not publicly released details of when the convention will be held. Officials with the party did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Several Democrats have announced runs for the Senate nomination this week. They include three candidates who lost the June primary for the governor nomination \u2014 former Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention director Nirav Shah, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows and former Maine Senate President Troy Jackson.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Others who have announced runs include Maine Beer Company co-founder Dan Kleban; former 2nd Congressional District candidates Jordan Wood and Paige Loud; and former Maine Senate candidates David Costello and Andrea LaFlamme. State Rep. Valli Geiger has also expressed interest in the post but has not formally announced.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=4724\">Trump will let bipartisan housing bill become law without signing in protest over GOP voter ID law<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Maine is considered a key state for control of the narrowly divided Senate, and Democrats were desperate for a candidate capable of defeating Republican Senator Susan Collins.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4729,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4730","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Graham Platner withdraws from Maine Senate race, kicking off Democrats\u2019 quest for nominee - 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