A woman has accused the Democratic candidate, Graham Platner, of sexual assault. The person concerned denies this, but Asinello’s upper echelons have removed their support.
What is shaking the American Democratic Party is a real earthquake. According to what was reported by Politicala woman accused the current Democratic candidate for the Maine senatorial seat, Graham Platner, of sexual assault. «These allegations are disturbing, serious and false. Any accusation of non-consensual behavior is categorically false,” the person concerned replied.
However, the accusation sparked a real political storm over Platner. The leaders of the Senate Dem group, Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, explicitly asked him to withdraw his candidacy. “Graham Platner must immediately withdraw from the Democratic nomination for Senate and give Maine Democrats the opportunity to choose a new candidate,” they said in a joint statement. Even members of Asinello’s left wing, such as MP Ro Khanna, have asked Platner to take a step back.
Running for the Maine senatorial seat last year, Platner had carved out the role of a progressive champion, as well as an anti-establishment figure. It is no coincidence that the video of his take to the field was produced by Zohran Mamdani’s advisor, Morris Katz. It must be said that his campaign has faced several obstacles over the months. In fact, some of his online comments with extremist political content had resurfaced. The candidate was also accused of sending sexually explicit messages to various women. So far, Platner’s campaign had managed to survive. However, it is very likely that it will not survive the article by Politicalespecially in light of the fact that, as we have seen, it is the Democratic Party itself that has withdrawn its support for the candidate.
And what will happen now? Under Maine law, applications can be withdrawn by July 13. If that happened, the state party would have two weeks to choose a replacement. The hands of the clock, therefore, are running. And, should Platner formalize a step backwards, his replacement could reignite the clash between Asinello’s centrist and progressive wings.
More generally, what is happening in Maine seriously risks cripple Asinello’s chances of regaining the majority in the US Senate in November. Second The Hillto be able to conquer the upper house, the easiest path for the Dems would be to defend the four seats in contention that they already hold (Georgia, New Hampshire, Michigan, Minnesota) and conquer, at the same time, the currently Republican seats in North Carolina, Maine, Iowa and Alaska). It is therefore clear that the Platner case risks compromising the Democratic victory in Maine and, therefore, putting Asinello’s overall strategy in obtaining control of the Senate in serious difficulty.
