Graham Platner weighs future of Senate bid after new sexual assault allegation
Speaking in the past tense, Democrat Graham Platner said he was "taking time to reflect" on his campaign to unseat Republican Sen. Susan Collins amid a new allegation from a Maine woman who said he sexually assaulted her nearly five years ago.
Platner denied the allegation and has repeatedly objected to such charges.
A 41-year-old Maine resident named Jenny Racicot told Politico in a July 6 story that she had an on-and-off relationship with Platner, the current Democratic Senate nominee in Maine, for more than two years before Platner allegedly entered her home uninvited one night in late 2021 while intoxicated and forcibly pursued her while she repeatedly told him to stop.
Raciot told the outlet she cut off contact with him after telling him the encounter was not consensual.
"I remember him grabbing my pelvis and being really forceful of me," Raciot told Politico. "I remember the specific moment where I thought to myself, like, 'This is no longer my choice.'"
Platner denied the allegations.
"These allegations are troubling, serious, and false. Any accusation of non-consensual behavior is categorically untrue," he said in a statement provided to USA TODAY.
Following the Politico story, Platner reiterated his denial in a video posted on social media the afternoon of July 6. He had also canceled several events on the campaign trail.
"We were united in a love of Maine, a belief that our politics must change, and a focus on defeating Susan Collins," Platner said, notably employing the past tense in the two-minute video.
"Regardless of the inaccuracy of the reporting, but mindful of the political reality it will inflict, we are taking the time to reflect on the best path forward, for the state that I love, the people that I love, the movement I belong to, and the goal of defeating Susan Collins," Platner continued. "Those were the goals when we launched this campaign, and they remain my goals today."
Alleged victim felt compelled to go public
Racicot, whose name had previously appeared in a related story in the New York Times, said she felt compelled to go public about her experience because the reaction to that story was dominated by controversy about another woman, Lyndsey Fifield, who alleged that Platner mistreated her and faced attacks because of her ties to the Republican Party.
Racicot, who is a Democrat, told Politico she was torn about coming forward in part because she agrees with Platner politically. She told the Times she and Platner dated casually between 2019 and 2021
Platner's campaign said in a July 6 statement that the candidate has withstood controversies brought to light an effort to get him to drop out of the race, including stories focused on a tattoo he had that appeared to resemble a Nazi symbol.
"For a year, opponents of this campaign have thrown everything they can at Graham – calling him a Nazi, a war criminal, and a communist. None of it has been true and this is no different. It is not a coincidence that this story comes a week before the ballot deadline, just as the previous false allegations came a week before the primary," the statement said. "Graham began this campaign to fight for a Maine where everyone is treated with dignity and where Mainers are put first, and no amount of desperate smears will stop this movement from seeing that vision through."
There's still time to drop out
Maine law says that a candidate may withdraw their name from the nomination by 5 p.m. on the second Monday in July. This year, that would be July 13.
To do so, a candidate must notify the Secretary of State in writing.
If Platner dropped out, the Secretary of State would declare a vacancy, and a political committee would then have two weeks, until July 27, to choose a replacement nominee for the general election.
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, or DSCC, did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for comment on the latest allegations against Platner.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Graham Platner weighs future of Senate bid after new sexual assault allegation
Reporting by Terry Collins, Margie Cullen and Zachary Schermele, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect
This story was originally published July 6, 2026 at 4:49 PM.