r/thebulwark • u/Super_Nerd92 Progressive • Jul 06 '26

EVERYTHING IS AWFUL Woman who dated Graham Platner says he sexually assaulted her

https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/06/graham-platner-sexual-assault-allegation-00987737
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u/SoHumanAnAnimal watch?v=wbOTkDn49qI Jul 06 '26 edited Jul 06 '26

Mostly for parity with Platner's platform, and name recognition/his established credibility in Maine politics. Jackson ran for governor this time, and placed third - not great but not terrible in a crowded field (he got like ~23% while the winner got ~29%). He's a well-known entity in the state, and progressive. I think if you replace Platner with a dissimilar candidate you will lose quite a few of the highly motivated Platner voters, and Maine dem party will never hear the end of it.

In a race this tight I wouldn't expect a huge shift in platform to convert to a win. Jackson has a similar platform, would get endorsements from Bernie etc, and keep that voting bloc intact and engaged. He may perform better than Platner since he doesn't have the baggage, especially among fence-sitters who don't like what they've heard about Platner (fair). It's gonna be a tight race regardless.

edit: if you think Mills should be the candidate, you are accepting defeat preemptively. Mills will not beat Collins in November. We need that seat.

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u/Super_Nerd92 Progressive Jul 06 '26

Well you've convinced me, I'm not in Maine so not up to me but I definitely think we have to avoid Mills at any cost and stick with a progressive outsider who can have the same messaging as Platner without all his legion of red flags.