Anti-Israel Democrat Platner Suspends Maine Senate Bid After Assault Allegation

Maine Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Graham Platner said in a video Wednesday that he is suspending campaign operations after a woman's sexual assault allegation from late 2021 that he denies. Sen. Chuck Schumer, DSCC chair Kirsten Gillibrand, Sens. Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Ruben Gallego, Rep. Ro Khanna, DNC chair Ken Martin, and the Maine Democratic Party had all urged him to quit. Platner had called Israeli military operations in Gaza genocide, opposed U.S. security aid to Israel, and accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of war crimes; he told supporters, "We believe that for the movement to continue, it can't be me." He must formally withdraw from the ballot by Monday July 13 at 5 p.m., with Maine Democrats set to pick a replacement by July 27 to face incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins.