Gov. Mikie Sherrill wants embattled Maine U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner to withdraw from the race following allegations that he raped a woman in 2021.
“I think candidate Platner needs to have left the race yesterday and become ex-candidate Platner because it’s too important,” Sherrill said during a Morning Joe appearance on MS NOW.
Democrats nationally and in Maine are urging Platner to drop his Senate bid after his former girlfriend accused him of sexual assault.
The deadline to replace him on the ballot is Monday. Platner faces five-term Republican Susan Collins.
“Maine is so incredibly important as we work to take back a majority in the Senate,” Sherrill stated. “So, he needs to get out right away.”
Sherrill doesn’t want to risk an opportunity for Democrats to take control of the U.S. Senate in the November midterm election.
“We had a saying on the Hill about Susan Collins: she was always there when we didn’t need her,” said Sherrill, a former congresswoman. “That is not these times. We need people who are going to fight when it matters, not when it doesn’t.”
New Jersey’s two U.S. Senators, Cory Booker and Andy Kim, and Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-Tenafly), have told Platner to exit the race. So have key Platner allies, like Bernie Sanders.