# Are there any reasons to reject Graham Platner in Maine (campaign suspended July 8, 2026) **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [March 4, 2026, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179 "2026-03-04T03:50:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 12
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/223 "2026-05-01T13:26:04Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Do we have any reason, at all, to believe he’ll do so? > > I’ve come to the conclusion that the best move in the general is to vote for Collins, for the simple reason that she’s 73 years old, while Platner is young and fit. She’s not going to live forever. She just has to live for the next 6 years to do more damage. Collins sometimes breaks with the party but still votes MAGA most of the time. And she votes MAGA on judicial nominees 99% of the time. At worst Platner will be an embarrassment like brain damaged Fetterman but he still votes with the party most of the time. Most likely Platner will fade into the background of the senate. Least likely his mask will be pulled off like a Scooby-doo villain to reveal a republican. Just like if you vote for Collins. Possible maybe probable good outcome if you vote one way. Definite bad outcome if you vote the other way. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/224 "2026-05-01T13:30:01Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > If losing this race means the message that the Democratic party receives is “running a Boy With A Nazi Tattoo is always a losing move” and that my party never does this again, I’d consider one lost race to be a small price to pay. If losing the race means Trump puts whoever he wants on the Supreme Court and there is a chance to take the majority it’s a huge price to pay. I don’t know if it’s possible to take the senate but it’s important to try. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/225 "2026-05-01T13:30:19Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Possible maybe probable good outcome if you vote one way. Definite bad outcome if you vote the other way. Collins is a single Republican vote. Platner is the beginning of a Tea Party-like rot spreading through the Democratic party. You have seen what the Tea Party turned the Republicans into. That _cannot_ be allowed to happen to the Democrats, or _all hope is lost_. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/226 "2026-05-01T13:31:42Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > > [@Loach](#): > > > > Possible maybe probable good outcome if you vote one way. Definite bad outcome if you vote the other way. > > Collins is a single Republican vote. Platner is the beginning of a Tea Party-like rot spreading through the Democratic party. Ok you convinced me. It’s fine to hand Trump another senate. That’ll show em. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/227 "2026-05-01T13:37:00Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Ok you convinced me. It’s fine to hand Trump another senate. That’ll show em This is all academic, thankfully I don’t live in Maine and so I don’t actually have to decide if I’ll vote for Platner or not. But sure, I agree that in the scenario where Platner is the difference between flipping the Senate and not flipping the Senate, and assuming that in that world there’s a Supreme Court nomination before 2028, I agree that the immediate damage from a supreme court nomination might outweigh the damage that electing a Nazi scumbag like Platner will do to the Democratic party’s brand. Really, my objection is to this phrasing: > [@Loach](#): > > Possible maybe probable good outcome if you vote one way. Definite bad outcome if you vote the other way. Platner is not a “good” outcome, even if he votes with Democrats every time. He is the mirror version of the Tea Party, and every Tea Party Left victory brings the Democrats closer to disaster and this country closer to oblivion. There are situations where Collins can do enough damage to outweigh the damage Platner will do if elected, but it’s not nearly as clear cut as you put it. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/228 "2026-05-01T13:45:32Z")
Platner has a solid chance to wind up as Fetterman 2.0, siding with right-wing Republicans and helping torpedo progressive Democratic initiatives.. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/229 "2026-05-01T13:45:43Z")
I don’t remotely trust Platner, but being a Republican and voting for Trump nominees, like Collins, is even more dangerous and damaging to the country than the possibility Platner is a secret Nazi. ISTM that voting Platner means some non-zero likelihood that he’s an actual Democrat who will vote to oppose MAGA nominees and policies; voting Collins means that likelihood is zero. If I lived in Maine I’d vote Platner. This is a real test for the “vote blue no matter what” crowd… usually that’s trying to convince far-left Democrats to vote for a moderate nominee. Now it’s ostensibly the other way around (though I’m not exactly convinced that Platner is “far left”). Can supposedly “moderate” Democrats accept that Democratic primary voters chose a candidate they don’t like and support them over a MAGA Republican (which Collins absolutely is, as much as she might try to pretend she’s not)? ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/230 "2026-05-01T13:56:42Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > There’s also the question of precedent, and of the message that’s sent to the rest of the country. “As Maine goes, so goes the nation.” ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/231 "2026-05-01T14:38:13Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Generally speaking, the party doesn’t “find” people to run; party leadership might encourage particular candidates, but it’s largely up to which people choose, on their own, whether to run or not. > > And, generally, there also isn’t much that they can do to prevent an unpalatable candidate from running. Nobody is really blaming Platner for doing Platner things. The real question was why was Mills the best the establishment Dems could find? And that goes to the core of the rot inside of the Democratic party. There’s a reason why the Democratic Party [only has a 28% approval rating](https://edition.cnn.com/2026/04/03/politics/cnn-poll-double-haters-democrats-midterms) despite record Trump unpopularity. People have short memories but the Dems decided on Mills before the Zohran Mamdani win, before the milquetoast response to the Iran War, it was actually a pretty substantially different world back then. The real anger should be directed at Schumer and Jeffries who despite their manifest unpopularity and deep anger from the basis, insist on running everything as business as usual and are walking into a buzzsaw for Democracy. That they haven’t released the 2024 election autopsy report should be far more of a concerning “rot inside of the Democratic Party” than “the new Tea Party of the left” rhetoric. Yes, both are bad but one has been much much worse for a much longer time. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/232 "2026-05-01T14:52:36Z")
That corrupt antisemite piece of shit Cori Bush lost in the primary in the last election so a one term career may be possible. Collins has to go. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/233 "2026-05-01T14:53:02Z")
> [@Shalmanese](#): > > The real anger should be directed at Schumer and Jeffries who despite their manifest unpopularity and deep anger from the basis, insist on running everything as business as usual and are walking into a buzzsaw for Democracy. That they haven’t released the 2024 election autopsy report should be far more of a concerning “rot inside of the Democratic Party” than “the new Tea Party of the left” rhetoric. Yes, both are bad but one has been much much worse for a much longer time. The difference is that one of these things is a real problem that poses a serious threat to the Democratic Party, and the other is entirely a messaging problem mostly caused by the fact that most left wing media gets its credibility by shitting on Democrats constantly, either from an “Establishment Media demonstration of neutrality by grilling Democrats while sane washing Republicans” perspective or an “Alternative Media ideological purity testing from the fringes of the far left” perspective. That just leaves right wing media (Fox or alternative) which shits on Democrats 24/7 for obvious reasons. For example, here’s something you’ll never see anyone give Schumer or Jeffries credit for, despite how well deserved credit would be: Total Democratic Victory over DHS funding! > **[Congress votes to reopen key parts of DHS without ICE funding | CNN Politics](https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/30/politics/dhs-shutdown-funding-bill-house-vote)** > > Congress voted to reopen key parts of the Department of Homeland Security — including the Transportation Security Administration — Thursday after weeks of GOP infighting that prolonged a record shutdown of the critical agency. That’s right, what you call “business as usual” is actually the Democrats winning their shutdown fight hands down. The functional parts of the DHS are getting the funding they need without a penny going to ICE. You think Platner will give them any credit for that? You think he even comprehends what it takes to get something like that done? Yeah, right. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/234 "2026-05-01T15:02:29Z")
This discussion is interesting, but at the risk of junior modding, it’s probably better in a different thread ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/235 "2026-05-01T18:31:28Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > If losing this race means the message that the Democratic party receives is “running a Boy With A Nazi Tattoo is always a losing move” and that my party never does this again, I’d consider one lost race to be a small price to pay. Again: the Democratic Party of Maine did _not_ choose Platner to run. Platner chose to run as a Democrat. The party itself has a limited ability to “find” or “run” candidates. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/236 "2026-05-01T18:32:55Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Being young, dumb, and drunk could explain getting the tattoo. It can’t explain keeping the tattoo for a decade after that. Nor does it explain his relatively recent interactions with Nazi sympathizers. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/237 "2026-05-01T18:41:18Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Again: the Democratic Party of Maine did _not_ choose Platner to run. Platner chose to run as a Democrat. The party itself has a limited ability to “find” or “run” candidates. Maine does have a semi-open primary, but I somehow doubt that it was unregistered Republicans who gave Platner the nomination. > [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Nor does it explain his relatively recent interactions with Nazi sympathizers Maybe no one except Nazi sympathizers would talk to him? Oh wait, no, he was just on Jon Stewart. Very disappointing. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/238 "2026-05-01T18:42:42Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > I somehow doubt that it was unregistered Republicans who gave Platner the nomination. Maine voters =/= the Democratic Party of Maine. The **Party** has limited-to-no ability to determine who runs as a Democrat. And, as been beaten to death already upthread, the Democratic primary ballot consisted only of Platner and Mills, until she dropped out. He has effectively been “given” the nomination because no one else is running. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/239 "2026-05-01T18:45:04Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Maine voters =/= the Democratic Party of Maine. The **Party** has limited-to-no ability to determine who runs as a Democrat I know. When I said “my party” I wasn’t referring to just the party apparatchiks. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/240 "2026-05-01T18:45:25Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Again: the Democratic Party of Maine did _not_ choose Platner to run. Platner chose to run as a Democrat. The party itself has a limited ability to “find” or “run” candidates. Right. Let us see how much $$ the DNC funnels his way- I bet it is not a lot. Look, Maine is weird- always has been. Look at Senator King- alright, he isnt that strange, but he is a Indy that caucuses with the Dems, but his positions are not in line with the Dem platform > **[Angus King | Political positions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angus_King#Political_positions)** > > King has been described as a moderate Independent. He has called himself "neither a Democrat nor a Republican, but an American". The nonpartisan National Journal gave him a 2013 composite ideology score of 59% liberal and 41% conservative. His Crowdpac score is −4.3 (10 is the most conservative, −10 the most liberal), based on his campaign contributions, votes, and speeches. According to a study published by The Washington Post called "Party Unity scores", King voted with the Demo In August 2018,... Look at their Governor- > **[Janet Mills | Political positions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janet_Mills#Political_positions)** > > Mills has taken steps to expand access to abortion procedures, signing legislation to mandate that both public and private insurance agencies include abortion procedures within the scope of their coverage. After the leak of the 2022 Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, Mills reaffirmed her position that "unlike an apparent majority of the Supreme Court, I do not consider the rights of women to be dispensable." > Mills has expressed her opposition to the decrimina... Maine just goes it’s own way. Yes, they are well aware Platner had a SS tattoo. They dont seem to care. > [@Shalmanese](#): > > The real question was why was Mills the best the establishment Dems could find? > [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Maine voters =/= the Democratic Party of Maine. The **Party** has limited-to-no ability to determine who runs as a Democrat. We have explained how Primary elections work and what the Party can do several times. Oh, and > **[Graham Platner | Military](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#Military)** > > Platner enlisted in the Marine Corps shortly after graduating from high school in 2003. He attended the Marine Corps School of Infantry, then deployed to Iraq in 2005. He served a total of eight years in the military, including three combat tours in Iraq, in areas including Ramadi and Fallujah. Asked why he served in the Iraq War after protesting it, Platner said, "I thought I could do some good. And I wanted to play soldier. I might have read too much Hemingway." > After four years in the militar... > Senator [Bernie Sanders](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernie_Sanders "Bernie Sanders") endorsed Platner on August 30, ahead of a [Fighting Oligarchy tour](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fighting_Oligarchy_tour "Fighting Oligarchy tour") appearance in [Portland](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portland,_Maine "Portland, Maine") with Platner and Maine gubernatorial candidate [Troy Jackson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troy_Jackson_(politician) "Troy Jackson (politician)").[[31]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-:5-31)[[32]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-Jones_2025-32) The event had originally been scheduled to be held in an auditorium but had to be moved to a much larger arena due to high public interest.[[33]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-33)[[34]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-34) Platner has also been endorsed by former [United States Secretary of Labor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Secretary_of_Labor "United States Secretary of Labor") [Robert Reich](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Reich "Robert Reich");[[35]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-35) Senators [Ruben Gallego](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruben_Gallego "Ruben Gallego"),[[36]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-Gallego-36) [Martin Heinrich](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Heinrich "Martin Heinrich"),[[37]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-37) and [Elizabeth Warren](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Warren "Elizabeth Warren");[[38]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-38) and Representative [Ro Khanna](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ro_Khanna "Ro Khanna").[[39]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-39) He has also been endorsed by the [International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Federation_of_Professional_and_Technical_Engineers "International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers"), [Maine State Nurses Association](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maine_State_Nurses_Association "Maine State Nurses Association"), and [United Auto Workers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Auto_Workers "United Auto Workers").[[40]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Platner#cite_note-40) If Sanders, Warren, and Khanna can ignore that now covered tattoo, then I can also. There are some pretty smart political experts there, they know more than we do. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/241 "2026-05-01T18:46:31Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > When I said “my party” I wasn’t referring to just the party apparatchiks. Fair. But that seems to be what people upthread have been complaining about: that the “Democrats” (which, from context, I can only take to be the actual party leadership, not just “Democratic voters”) seemed to be unable to “find” or “run” a better candidate. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2026, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179/242 "2026-05-01T18:48:09Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > But that seems to be what people upthread have been complaining about: that the “Democrats” (which I can only take to be the actual party) could not “find” or “run” a better candidate. And, if you look at Janet Mills positions, she isnt really the ideal candidate either. You just aint gonna get a normal sort of politician in Maine. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-reasons-to-reject-graham-platner-in-maine-campaign-suspended-july-8-2026/1028179.md?page=13)