A progressive who is eying a bid to replace Democratic Maine Senate nominee Graham Platner demanded on Monday that he suspend his congressional campaign, citing concerns over sexual abuse allegations.
Troy Jackson, a former state senator who lost last month’s Democratic primary for Maine governor, has been floated as someone who could succeed Platner, should the embattled Senate candidate withdraw from the race amid controversies that have surrounded his campaign. This week, Jackson said he was “very, very interested” in replacing Platner, arguing that “I am the best person” to do so, according to Bangor Daily News.
Jackson said, “I believe Jenny Racicot,” referring to a woman who recently accused Platner of raping her, and called on the Senate candidate to drop out of the race immediately.
“There is no place in our politics for sexual violence. Not in our party, not in any party,” Jackson wrote in a post to X. “This is not what we stand for. Not as Democrats, not as Mainers, not as human beings. For too long, women who survive sexual violence have been told to stay quiet, to protect the men who hurt them, to think about the campaign, the party, the cause. We cannot ask women to trust us with their futures while looking the other way when one of our own hurts them. That ends here.”
Jackson’s post comes hours after Platner said on Monday he would take a break from the campaign, following Racicot’s allegations that he forced her to have nonconsensual sex. Platner has denied the claim, but said he would “reflect” on his candidacy as he loses support, with under one week left to remove his name from the ballot.
Some disgruntled members of a Discord server dedicated to supporting Platner have been among those who have floated backing Jackson to replace the candidate, because of his progressive platform and gubernatorial endorsement from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who backed Platner in the Senate race.
“I don’t view this as a campaign to get one specific guy in office. I view it as a campaign to get a set of progressive policies in office. This isn’t over,” said AllisonIsLivid.
However, progressives are far from aligned. While Democrats ranging from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) have condemned Platner, Sanders, one of the candidate’s most high-profile supporters, has yet to withdraw his endorsement of the campaign. Our Revolution, a progressive organization founded by Sanders, has said Platner should withdraw because the allegations “are too serious to treat as a distraction from the campaign or the issues.”
Still, an online progressive activist group has raised concerns about Jackson, though it has stressed that it hasn’t substantiated any claims against him.
