What does a political candidate with no track record of accomplishment in life do when exposed as a violent abuser in at least one past relationship? Does he (a) withdraw, (b) produce documentary evidence of his innocence, or (c) make a play for sympathy?
A man of honor would choose (a), and a party of honor would insist on it. An innocent man would choose (b). If you're a middle-aged man living in a house your dad bought and barely doing a job your mom gave you, the choice is apparently (c). Or so Graham Platner thought, even though the people who attended his rally didn't allow the allegations to dampen their enthusiasm one bit:
MAINE MELTDOWN: Embattled Senate candidate Graham Platner pleads for pity during an emotional speech, claiming "this is a pretty hard thing to go through" after past partners push forward with serious allegations.@marcthiessen: "You know what's really hard to go through?… pic.twitter.com/wer1bHResR
— FOX & Friends (@foxandfriends) June 8, 2026
@marcthiessen: "You know what's really hard to go through? Getting your arm taken behind your back and locked in a room overnight by your abusive boyfriend. That's what's hard to go through."
Shameless.
As it turned out, though, Platner didn't have to throw himself on the mercy of his supporters. They apparently couldn't care less about allegations of violence from Lyndsey Fifield or more ambiguous allegations from Jenny Racicot of frightening behavior. The New York Times' modified limited hangout on Platner's behalf seems to have succeeded, as the Wall Street Journal reported overnight:
Graham Platner held a town hall Sunday evening where voters could ask him about allegations of past misconduct. No one did.
Instead, voters doubled down on their support for the Democrat.
At one point, when he went to speak to an overflow crowd outside the building, a man could be heard yelling “Don’t let the bastards get you down.”
“We’re not, don’t worry,” Platner responded. “Don’t drop out,” another woman followed.
The event was the first where voters would have been able to ask him questions after reports of misconduct, including of abuse by one ex-girlfriend. The woman also disputed Platner’s account that he only recently learned a tattoo he wore on his chest for 18 years was a symbol adopted by the Nazi’s SS paramilitary. Platner has denied the allegations of abuse and continues to say he didn’t know the tattoo’s meaning.
This wasn't just a rally. It was set up as a town hall event where voters could ask Platner questions, which gave them an opportunity to drill down into these allegations, as well as why he spent 18 years with a Nazi SS symbol tattooed on his heart. As the WSJ notes, not one single attendee asked about any of these reveals. Instead, they just proclaimed themselves part of the "Grahamily," which may mean that Platner will have more employment opportunities if he loses the election.
Does this mean Platner continues to have momentum coming into tomorrow's primary? Eh ... probably not. The venue appeared to be rather small (from the WSJ photo), and it's not clear whether the event filled the hall to capacity. The people likeliest to come to a final-weekend event for Platner would be his true believers rather than people still on the fence about supporting Herr Totenkopf. Platner's campaign likely also anticipated the risk and seeded the hall with reliable "plants" to pose questions, but if they did, it may not have even been necessary.
Also, his allies seem to be having second thoughts. House Dem Ro Khanna campaigned for Platner this weekend, but warned him to stop attacking Fifield, saying, "I believe her":
Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) on Sunday said he believes the ex-girlfriend of Maine Democrat Graham Platner, Lyndsey Fifield, whose allegations of emotional abuse and toxic behavior were published in the New York Times last week.
Khanna, who has endorsed Platner and campaigned by his side, said on CBS's Face the Nation that he believes Fifield and condemned Platner's actions, but emphasized Fifield should not be attacked for coming forward.
"I believe her," Khanna said. "I think Graham acted shamefully, and he acted ... as a toxic relationship. It is shameful. It is ugly. It happened in a dark period of his life."
Khanna noted that Platner has owned up to his mistakes when speaking to Maine voters, and the voters Khanna has spoken with understand the allegations brought against the Senate hopeful and are willing to "embrace redemption."
That's too cute by half. On what basis does Khanna assert the redemption he seeks to credit Platner with achieving? In order to achieve redemption, one first has to atone, and to atone, one first has to confess. Platner hasn't even taken the first step of accountability, let alone atone or redeem himself. Khanna is just trying to unwind the Gordian knot of #MeToo when applied to Democrats, and ends up arguing that voters owe Platner a high public office for a redemption arc he hasn't even yet begun.
Khanna's not the only high-profile Democrat attempting to spin his way out of the damage Platner is doing to the Democrat brand. His erstwhile colleague from Virginia told ABC's This Week that Platner needs to respond substantively to these abuse allegations, whether rally voters ask him or not:
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) on Sunday urged Maine Senate hopeful Graham Platner to disprove what Warner called "disturbing" allegations of emotional abuse of ex-girlfriends.
Speaking with ABC's This Week, Warner was asked about allegations brought by former partners of Platner that accuse the Democratic candidate of emotional abuse and volatile, toxic behavior that were published by the New York Times on Thursday. ...
"I don't know Mr. Platner, I've never met him," Warner said. "I would just say this: The allegations are made. I think you ought to have at least some attempt to ... disprove them, if that's the case."
Not only have the allegations been made, but they have also been corroborated by text messages, Fifield's diary entries (which she shared with the NYT), and by testimony from her friends about her contemporaneous reveals of Platner's actions and character. Platner's claims to have been mystified by the nature of his tattoo have also been debunked by Platner's testimony and texts, which Platner could not refute, not even while M-SNOW's Chris Hayes basically set up a T-ball stand for Platner to spin it.
Platner will likely win the primary tomorrow. The NYT's modified limited hangout with the allegations didn't appear until just hours before four weeks of early voting concluded, and around 35,000 ballots were cast in that period while Janet Mills went dark on her campaign. The big question for Democrats tomorrow will be what the Primary Day vote will look like. If Mills gets a big boost at the last minute, the party may try to push Herr Totenkopf off the ballot before their state convention in five weeks. Maine law allows for that substitution, but apparently only if the winner of the primary withdraws from the race before then. Stay tuned for tomorrow's live results here at Hot Air, and for the fallout afterward – especially if more allegations emerge.
