The Graham Platner Story Reveals the Difference Between the Parties

I am not a Maine voter. And Mainers have made it clear that they want people who aren’t to stay out of their elections. I respect that, and I intend to. But I will say one thing.

Graham Platner, the Democrats’ nominee to run for the U.S. Senate against Susan Collins, has been credibly accused of sexual assault. He denies it but says he is taking time to “reflect.”

“The woman, a 41-year-old Maine resident named Jenny Racicot, detailed the alleged incident to POLITICO in three interviews over the past two weeks. POLITICO also spoke with a man Racicot dated and confided in the years after the alleged incident, and reviewed documents, including emails between Racicot and her therapist and messages between Racicot and an acquaintance whom she warned against getting involved with Platner years before he ran for office.”

When a candidate who has sexually abused women seeks public office, it doesn’t matter what party he’s in. He should be out. He’s not fit. It doesn’t matter if it’s a Brett Kavanaugh seeking confirmation to become a Supreme Court justice. Or an Eric Swalwell who’s a representative in the House.

If there are allegations that a candidate or an officeholder denies, they should be thoroughly and publicly investigated. The voting public is not a jury in a criminal court; it doesn’t decide whether an accused defendant should lose their liberty and go to prison. It’s not about guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Instead, it’s a decision about whether someone is fit to hold a job, and we should use our common sense to make that determination.

That takes us to Graham Platner, around whom stories of different kinds, including other allegations of mistreatment of women, have been surfacing since shortly after he got into the race. This most recent accusation about him was made by a woman to multiple people, long before he got into politics, including a treating physician. Maine Democrats are already joining national party leaders in calling for Platner to leave the race.

Because this is how it’s done. No man who has raped a woman is fit to serve in public office.

It’s up to Maine voters to decide what to do next. But if they believe these allegations are true, then the only choice they can make is to replace him. They have plenty of qualified candidates, as the contested Democratic primary for governor shows. That choice will be a political one. Removing the current candidate is one of ethics, morality, and common decency.

The contrast here is hard to ignore. Democrats have shown that when credible allegations of sexual misconduct emerge against one of their own, the conversation turns quickly to accountability. Republicans have made a different choice. That’s not a partisan talking point. It’s a difference in how the two parties have approached questions of character and fitness for office over the last ten years.

Democrats shouldn’t lower their standards because the other party already has. If anything, this is the moment to insist that the same principles apply every time, regardless of whose name is on the ballot.

We’re in this together,

Joyce