Graham Platner Officially Exits Maine Senate Race, Leaves Pointed Message in Final Letter

Graham Platner has officially withdrawn from Maine’s Senate race, filing paperwork to remove his name from the ballot after denying sexual assault allegations that ended his campaign.

Graham Platner has made it official, formally ending his bid for the US Senate seat in Maine on Friday afternoon, closing out a campaign that had been shadowed by a string of controversies. Maine’s secretary of state confirmed that Platner had submitted the necessary filing to take his name off the November ballot. The move came two days after he first told the public he intended to step away from the race.

Platner shared a letter on social media laying out the populist principles that fueled his rapid rise in Maine politics and drew significant support across the state. Rather than closing the door on the political movement he built, he urged supporters to keep it going. He thanked those who had backed his campaign and called for what he described as a new kind of politics.

In the letter, Platner wrote that people are desperate for change, for a broken system to be fixed, and for the country’s democratic experiment to keep moving forward. He referenced the more than 156,000 votes he earned during the June 9 primary, arguing that even though his name had appeared on the ballot, that line ultimately belonged to the voters of Maine rather than to him personally.

“On June 9th, 156,084 Mainers voted for a new kind of politics. One that is representative of people down here in the real world – not billionaires, oligarchs, or the political establishment,” Platner wrote. “They voted for time and dignity; for strong unions and jobs they can raise families on; for the hope of buying a home; for the chance to retire with grace,” he added.

READ MORE: Who Could Replace Graham Platner on Maine’s Senate Ballot

Notably, the letter made no mention of the sexual assault allegations that surfaced against him this week and prompted him to suspend his campaign in the first place.

Despite all of this, Platner, an oyster farmer and Marine Corps veteran, had managed to build a notable following throughout the race.

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