Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) is sticking by Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner in the face of controversy as he announced a get-out-the-vote rally with Platner in Maine for Friday.
Platner’s campaign was hit with another scandal this weekend, as news broke that he sent sexually explicit text messages to multiple women while married to his wife, who knew of the messages. Despite some Democrats, such as Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), voicing concern over the scandal, Platner has remained focused on campaigning against Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), and his progressive allies, like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), have maintained support for his campaign.
Recommended Stories
Khanna is the latest Democrat to stay behind Platner in the face of controversy, announcing the rally in Bar Harbor for Friday with Platner, gubernatorial candidate Troy Jackson, and House candidate Matt Dunlap.
“Join me, @grahamformaine, @TroyJackson207, and @dunlap4congress in Maine on Friday as we put together a modern new deal coalition to move our party forward with economic populism and moral clarity on stopping wars,” Khanna posted on X.
Khanna’s Monday announcement of the rally came just days after the text message scandal broke. The scandal was the latest controversy to hit Platner’s campaign, following his now-covered skull tattoo resembling a Nazi symbol and some explicit, since-deleted Reddit postings, including one reportedly questioning the Armenian genocide.
Platner has managed to glide by so far without the scandals plaguing him or his campaign, as the oyster farmer still leads Collins in recent general election polling while leaning on his progressive, populist platform. A University of New Hampshire poll from late May had Platner leading Collins by 9 percentage points.
Khanna, a prominent Democrat from California, has underscored Platner’s rhetoric about taxing the rich and lifting up working-class Mainers.
NEW PLATNER AD LEANS INTO TRUMPIAN RHETORIC: ‘TAKING BACK WHAT IS OURS’
“Americans are tired of an establishment that puts billionaires over ordinary people. We need new leaders who will work for the hardworking people of Maine above all else,” Khanna’s get-out-the-vote rally invitation said.
The rally comes days before Maine’s June 9 primary. Both Jackson and Dunlap are candidates in crowded Democratic primaries in their respective gubernatorial and 2nd Congressional District races, but Platner is the party’s de facto nominee in the Senate race after Gov. Janet Mills (D-ME) dropped out of the primary.
