Sanders remains quiet as pressure grows for Platner to quit amid rape claim
A bombshell rape allegation has thrown Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner's campaign into turmoil, but some of his most progressive supporters in Congress are standing by him.At least three Democratic...
By Fox News · Fox News
A bombshell rape allegation has thrown Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner's campaign into turmoil, but some of his most progressive supporters in Congress are standing by him. At least three Democratic lawmakers — Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Chris Murphy, D-Conn., and Chris Van Hollen, D-Md. — have yet to withdraw their support or call on Platner to end his campaign after Maine resident Jenny Racicot, 41, accused him of rape in interviews with Politico and CNN. Asked by Fox News Digital about Racicot's allegation that Platner in 2021 barged into her home while intoxicated and forced her to have unprotected sex, none of the lawmakers responded by publication time. The muted response marks the latest sign that some progressives are sticking with Platner despite mounting scandals threatening the viability of his Senate bid. DEMOCRATS BREAK WITH SCANDAL-PLAGUED GRAHAM PLATNER, WARN OF 'CIVIL WAR' IN PARTY Some Platner allies have viewed his rise as part of a broader fight over the Democratic Party's direction, with the Senate hopeful embodying a more populist, far-left vision. Maine Democrats rejected Platner's primary rival, Gov. Janet Mills, D-Maine, who was aligned with the party's establishment, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. Mills suspended her campaign weeks before the June primary amid poor polling and fundraising struggles. Other leading leftists, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., quickly rescinded their endorsements of Platner and called on him to exit the race. Similarly, Schumer and Senate Democrats’ campaign arm, which had only endorsed Platner after his June primary victory, demanded the immediate suspension of his campaign. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., who previously called a physical abuse allegation by former Platner girlfriend Lyndsey Fifield "a lot of nothing" in an interview with NOTUS, withdrew his support for Platner on Tuesday following Racicot’s rape accusation. His statement comes a…