Graham Platner has officially withdrawn from the United States Senate race in Maine, the Secretary of State's office confirmed late afternoon on Friday.
The Democrat’s letter pulling out from the race closed with “F*ck ICE. Free Palestine. Up the Hearts,” and he wrote that his “name may have been on the ballot, but that ballot line belongs to the people of Maine.”
— Graham Platner for Senate (@grahamformaine) July 10, 2026
Platner suspended his campaign earlier this week following a rape accusation, which he denies, opening the door for a replacement nominee to take on Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) in November.
“Because the candidate officially withdrew before 5 p.m. of the 2nd Monday in July (July 13, 2026), his name will not appear on the ballot, and his political party may replace him. The deadline for the party to name a replacement is the 4th Monday in July (July 27, 2026),” the office wrote in a press release.
“Maine Statute does not address how a replacement candidate may be chosen by a party, only that the candidate filling the vacancy must be a ‘qualified person,’” the office added, further noting that the deadline for a “non-party candidate” has passed, but a write-in candidate has until August 25 to jump in.
Axios reported on Thursday that it was possible Platner could have waited until the Monday deadline to drop out. However, Democrats in Maine have already started gearing up for a convention later this month to decide a new nominee, as Nirav Shah, Shenna Bellows, Jordan Wood and Troy Jackson have already thrown their hat into the race.
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