{"id":49093,"date":"2026-07-09T14:08:59","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T21:08:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=49093"},"modified":"2026-07-09T14:08:59","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T21:08:59","slug":"platner-campaign-accuses-maine-dems-of-plotting-replacement-process-behind-closed-doors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2026\/07\/09\/platner-campaign-accuses-maine-dems-of-plotting-replacement-process-behind-closed-doors\/","title":{"rendered":"Platner Campaign Accuses Maine Dems of Plotting Replacement Process \u2018Behind Closed Doors\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Graham<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Graham Platner speaks at a town hall at the Leavitt Theater on October 22, 2025 in Ogunquit, Maine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0(Photo by Sophie Park\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe firmly believe that the supporters and volunteers who built this movement deserve to have a real role in any nomination process,\u201d said Graham Platner\u2019s campaign manager.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Jake Johnson<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jul 08, 2026 (CommonDreams.org)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Graham Platner\u2019s campaign manager on Wednesday accused the Maine<\/a> Democratic Party<\/a> of coordinating with national Democrats \u201cbehind closed doors\u201d and cutting the embattled US Senate<\/a> nominee\u2019s supporters out of the process to determine his potential replacement in the wake of a sexual assault allegation<\/a>\u2014and amid expectations that he will soon drop out of the race.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a text message<\/a> sent to Platner supporters, campaign chief Ben Chin wrote that the Maine Democratic Party \u201callowed the DC-based Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to send staffers to plan a potential nominating process behind closed doors. Both the state and national parties cut our team, our volunteers, and our vast networks of supporters out of the conversation completely.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RECOMMENDED…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Democratic<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Following Platner Allegations, Progressives Warn Democratic Establishment: \u2018This Is Not Your Opening\u2019<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Graham<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Now the Ball Is in the Court of the Democratic Establishment,\u2019 Platner Says as He Suspends Campaign<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe firmly believe that the supporters and volunteers who built this movement deserve to have a real role in any nomination process,\u201d Chin\u2019s message continued. \u201cIf the Maine Democratic Party hopes to harness our movement, and avoid disillusioning the hundreds of thousands of supporters who came into the fray because of our movement\u2019s policies, it must consult the feedback and proposals of the people who built and sustained this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The text included a link to a two-question survey asking Platner volunteers, \u201cWhat message do you have for the Democratic Party?\u201d and, \u201cWhat message do you have for Graham?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The defiant message came as Platner\u2019s campaign was reportedly planning<\/a> the nominee\u2019s exit from the US Senate race to pave the way for a different Democratic candidate to take on five-term Sen. Susan Collins<\/a> (R-Maine) in November. Platner has denied the sexual assault<\/a> allegation that prompted mass calls for him to exit the race, including from his most prominent supporters such as Sen. Bernie Sanders<\/a> (I-Vt.).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chin\u2019s text message was circulated a day after Devon Murphy-Anderson, the Maine Democratic Party\u2019s executive director, said in a video<\/a> posted to social media<\/a> that the party has been \u201cworking around the clock\u201d to develop a plan to replace Platner that is \u201copen, inclusive, transparent, and fair.\u201d The party has not yet publicly specified what that plan could entail, saying Platner must formally withdraw from the race first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Murphy-Anderson accused Platner\u2019s team of \u201crepeatedly reach[ing] out\u201d to the Maine Democratic Party \u201cin an attempt to put their thumb on the scale of what this process looks like.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have repeatedly reiterated to Graham Platner\u2019s team that they have no role in determining our next Democratic nominee for the US Senate,\u201d Murphy-Anderson added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In response to Murphy-Anderson\u2019s statement, the Platner campaign denied that it has attempted to exert influence over the replacement process, saying it simply \u201creached out to the party to try and understand what this process would look like.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOver 150,000 Mainers voted for this movement, and over 15,000 Mainers volunteered their time and energy to it,\u201d an unnamed Platner campaign official told<\/a> NBC News late Tuesday. \u201cWhile Graham wouldn\u2019t want to be a part of the process, he would want to make sure the voters and volunteers make this decision\u2014not the political establishment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Wednesday, the Maine Democratic Party issued a new statement<\/a> decrying what it called the Platner team\u2019s \u201cfalse accusations against us\u201d while also expressing gratitude for \u201chis supporters and all of their efforts to defeat Susan Collins.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey are a vital part of our party and deserve to participate in an open process to select Platner\u2019s replacement,\u201d said Maine Democrats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CNN reported<\/a> that Platner is \u201cexpected to announce his decision\u201d on his candidacy \u201cthrough a recorded video, which could come later Wednesday.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Platner must drop out of the race by July 13 if he\u2019s to be replaced on the November ballot. If he exits the race, an alternative must be selected by July 27.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Politico reported that Platner \u201cquietly fielded a poll Tuesday gauging the strength of people who could replace him on the ballot.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe flash poll, obtained by Politico, was conducted by Public Policy Polling and commissioned by Platner\u2019s campaign,\u201d the outlet reported. \u201cIt tested head-to-head match-ups between Republican Sen. Susan Collins and Platner, along with five possible Democratic replacements for Platner, including former Maine state Senate President Troy Jackson and Secretary of State Shenna Bellows.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOf the Democrats tested, Jackson performed the best, leading Collins 49% to 44%, with 7% of voters undecided,\u201d Politico reported. The outlet also noted that the poll, conducted the day after the sexual assault allegation against Platner was first reported by Politico, showed Platner trailing Collins 47% to 42%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jackson has\u00a0filed paperwork<\/a>\u00a0to explore a Senate bid in preparation for Platner\u2019s expected exit, and Bellows\u2014who lost badly to Collins in 2014\u2014has\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0she would \u201cseriously consider entering this race.\u201d Nirav Shah, former director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, is\u00a0also weighing a Senate bid<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jake Johnson<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jake Johnson is a senior editor and staff writer for Common Dreams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Full Bio ><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Graham Platner speaks at a town hall at the Leavitt Theater on October 22, 2025 in Ogunquit, Maine. \u00a0(Photo by Sophie Park\/Getty Images) \u201cWe firmly believe that the supporters and volunteers who built this movement deserve to have a real role in any nomination process,\u201d said Graham Platner\u2019s campaign manager…. Continue reading → <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1879],"tags":[1676,2045],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49093"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49093"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49093\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49094,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49093\/revisions\/49094"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49093"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49093"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49093"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}