Graham Platner, the Democratic candidate running for the Senate in Maine, denied the latest abuse allegations brought against him by multiple women on Thursday following another bombshell report.
Asked by MS NOW host Chris Hayes about additional allegations in a New York Times report, Platner insisted the claims were false.
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“There are some allegations in this piece that I just want to be kind of unequivocal about are simply not true,” he said on All In With Chris Hayes. “Anything alleging physicality, anything alleging that I knew what my tattoo was, these are the statements of someone who’s politically motivated.”
His statement was directed toward Lyndsey Fifield, a longtime Republican operative who has worked for conservative organizations and Republican campaigns.
In the report, Fifield claimed Platner frequently grabbed her shoulders and once grabbed her wrist forcefully when they dated years ago. She also recalled how he pushed her into a bedroom and closed the door on her. Platner denied all of those encounters, answering in the affirmative when Hayes asked him if she was lying.
“In this piece, there’s a lot about my struggling, not being a good boyfriend, certainly self-medicating with alcohol,” the military veteran said. “And I’ve been very upfront since the beginning of this campaign, that was a pretty dark period of my life after I came back from my combat service.”
“There are things in this that I absolutely will take responsibility for and have been speaking about openly for months now, but those serious allegations are just not true,” he added.
Despite the aggressive interactions as reported by the New York Times, Fifield said Platner never hit or punched her, though she alleged he fantasized about raping men who break into his home because of the power it gives him, recalling from their conversations that he didn’t intend the act to be done in “a sexual way” or “a gay way.”
Last weekend, the Wall Street Journal reported Platner’s wife told his Senate campaign about consensual, sexually explicit texts he sent to other women as recently as last year. The two have been married since 2023.
Platner described his marriage as “very strong,” saying he is thankful and lucky that he got to marry his “best friend.”
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During the interview, the Maine Democrat confirmed he is not dropping out of the Senate race ahead of the June 9 primary election, nor has he ever thought about doing so. Despite the abounding controversies, he remains the front-runner in the Democratic primary.
Gov. Janet Mills (D-ME), who suspended her campaign for the Senate in April, said she still remains on the ballot in a last-minute appeal to Maine voters following recent reports on her former primary opponent’s scandalous behavior. Platner responded, saying her statement demonstrates “a bit of opportunism.”
