A Maine oyster farmer, whose political views were shaped by learning about Irish history in high school, has become one of the Democrats’ biggest hopes of taking control of the US Senate this November.
However, a risky campaign, dogged by controversies over his treatment of women, previous trash-talking online and a tattoo resembling a Nazi symbol, imploded this week after a serious sexual assault allegation, throwing the Democratic party into disarray.
Graham Platner had been recruited by liberal activists to run on a populist platform, believing him to be an effective working-class communicator and a strong candidate who could beat incumbent Republican Susan Collins, who is vying for a sixth term in office.
The Marine Corps veteran, who has been open about his post-traumatic stress disorder from service, had secured top Democratic endorsements from progressives including Senator Bernie Sanders, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
Much of the Democrats’ energy in recent weeks had been put into defending the 41-year-old against his marital struggles, and several women, who had been romantically involved with him, described their relationships to the New York Times as “unsettling” and “toxic”.
This week, a serious sexual assault allegation torpedoed his bid for office and that support.
Jenny Racicot told Politico and CNN that Mr Platner entered her home without permission in 2021 when he was drunk and forced himself on her, ignoring her demands for him to stop.
In an 11-minute social media video, Mr Platner vehemently denied the rape allegations, calling them “false”.
Senator Bernie Sanders endorsed Graham Platner
Rather, he blamed the “political establishment” for making his campaign impossible to continue.
“This is incredibly difficult, because I know that some will think it’s an admission of guilt, and it most certainly is not.
“We’re not doing it because of the allegations, we’re doing it because of the structures that are being taken away from us by those in power,” he added.
The fallout sees the Democrats having to answer serious questions over whether the appropriate levels of vetting were undertaken to ensure a candidate could best represent the party in what has been seen as a crucial, and winnable, seat that could help secure control of the Senate.
“Clearly the people who promoted Platner should have done a far better job vetting him – and being honest about his vulnerabilities both in private and in public,” said Simon Rosenberg, a long-time centre-left strategist who now writes the Hopium Chronicles newsletter on Substack.
“Parties favour candidates who have been vetted and who have won before, and neither of those things are true of him. His flame-out is endangering our shot at winning the Senate,” he said.
Democrats must net four Senate seats to gain control of the 100-member chamber in November and party leaders viewed Maine as a crucial piece of the puzzle, along with Alaska, Ohio and North Carolina.
Mr Platner won last month’s Democratic primary with 72% of the vote and experts believe the chance is still there for Democrats.
Jessica Taylor, Senate Editor for the Cook Political Report, told RTÉ News the Democrats are better off without him and that Democrats have other have other options, but it is going to be a hard fight.
“Maine is one of the easiest paths forward because it’s the only state held by a Republican that Kamala Harris carried. Susan Collins has managed to outrun the political lean of the state before. She’s a very formidable candidate. She has the ability to do that again,” Ms Taylor said.
“But I think there are other states: Ohio, Alaska and Iowa. If they don’t win Maine, they have to win three states that Trump carried by double digits and that’s not easy to do either,” she said.
Republican strategists are divided on what Graham Platner’s downfall means for the race.
“I think that Platner soared initially because he is a unique and talented personality,” said Lance Dutson, a GOP strategist who formerly served as communications director for Collins’s 2014 campaign, in comments to The Hill.
“The odds of them being able to pull that off again … there’s nobody with just even the slightest of dynamism to them,” he added.
Republican pollster and strategist with On Message Inc, Sam Kay told RTÉ News that Susan Collins should still be worried.
“With a 53-seat majority, Democrats need to net four seats to flip the chamber, and there aren’t enough battleground states for them to accomplish that.
“Maine is a good pickup opportunity for [Democrats]. With Platner’s now public record, it’d probably be better for Collins’ chances if he stayed in the race. A generic Democrat without his history will likely perform better despite current polling,” he said.
Mr Platner’s withdrawal from the race has propelled a small state, with a population roughly the size of Dublin, into the global spotlight and the Democratic Party into another race to chart its next chapter.
Around 600 delegates will decide who the state’s candidate will be and it is turning into a Democratic free-for-all.
Support for the oyster farmer had already highlighted a deep gap that has formed between the Democrats’ progressive wing and the more centrist group in the party.
Former Senator Troy Jackson is logger from northern Maine
Those who initially stood by him looked past a drip-drip feed of controversies as they saw him as the best person to beat a vulnerable, yet underestimated, incumbent compared to members of the establishment who had harboured much scepticism about his candidacy and whether his behaviour aligned with party values.
“Obviously, there’s a lot in that behaviour that’s really challenging. It’s hard to stomach,” Rep Ocasio-Cortez told CNN at the beginning of June.
“But at the end of the day, I think it’s a choice … If the choice on the ballot is between that and a senator who’s voted to take healthcare away from millions of Americans, that’s the situation that we have to weigh,” she said.
It is expected that the fight to replace him will further expose divisions within the party with a lack of consensus on what direction it should go in.
Mr Platner’s appeal to voters had been his progressive policies, working-class “man of the people” image and the fact he was plucked from obscurity.
“It is important that someone carry forward the movement that has been built here of everyday working-class people who are fed up with a system in Washington that is so broken,” Maine House Speaker Ryan Fecteau said in an interview.
“There are a number of people in Maine politics who share the same views as Graham Platner, who have the same message as Graham Platner, who can carry this work forward,” he said.
Several names have already emerged, including many who ran in the gubernatorial primary race.
Two of the leading contenders illustrate that ideological divide.
Backed by Mr Platner and Senator Bernie Sanders during his recent Governor’s race, Troy Jackson has already secured the endorsement of Californian Representative Ro Khanna.
“There is a powerful movement of working-class people in the state of Maine, and millions more across America who are ready to send a progressive fighter to the Senate,” Mr Jackson, a logger from northern Maine, said.
Whereas former Director of Maine’s Centre for Disease Control and Prevention Nirav Shah is seen as the steadier, more moderate candidate, even though the former public health official has branded himself as a progressive.
“I’m proud to have dedicated my career to public service, and to have delivered for Mainers in our darkest times. Now, in this unprecedented moment, I’m ready to unite our party and fight for you once again,” Mr Shah said in a post.
The candidates now on offer embody the choice facing the Democratic Party: does it move towards the centre or continue embracing the progressive message that recently energised many of its voters?
“We ask for your patience as this work continues,” Devon Murphy-Anderson, the state party’s executive director, wrote in a message to committee members on Tuesday, according to the New York Times.
“Whatever process is ultimately adopted must reflect our Democratic values. It should be open, inclusive, transparent, and fair,” he said.
Democrats are once again searching for a reset after another high-profile candidate implosion.
In one of the country’s most closely watched Senate races, the choice they make over the coming weeks won’t simply determine a nominee.
It will offer the clearest indication yet of which direction the party believes it needs to take, which will set it up for what is going to be a gruelling 2028 race.