Politics
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AUGUSTA, Maine — Graham Platner became the presumptive Democratic nominee to challenge U.S. Sen. Susan Collins on Thursday after Gov. Janet Mills suspended her campaign, triggering a rapid consolidation of party support behind the 2026 race’s insurgent frontrunner.
Mills announced her withdrawal Thursday morning, ending a bid that struggled to gain traction against Platner’s grassroots-fueled campaign in a remarkable milestone for a political newcomer. The governor said she had the “passion, commitment and experience” but lacked the funding to keep the campaign going.
Platner looked to appeal to the governor and her supporters after an at-times divisive primary that was marked by her March ad blitz that aimed to draw more attention to the old Reddit posts that rocked his campaign when they were unearthed in October. They failed to blunt his momentum, and the governor has been dark on the airwaves for weeks.
“I reached out to the governor this morning, giving her my thanks for her decades of service to this state,” Platner, a Sullivan oyster farmer and military veteran, told reporters gathered at the Governor Hill Mansion near the State House in Augusta on Thursday. “I’m very much looking forward to working with her closely as we move forward.”
News of Mills pulling out of the race shakes up one of the most pivotal Senate races in the country. Republicans are already facing steep challenges as they aim to keep their slim majority in the U.S. House. With President Donald Trump’s approval rating sinking amid a war with Iran, gas prices soaring and an economy still struggling, the Senate could be up for grabs as well.
“We need a voice for all of Maine in the U.S. Senate,” said state Sen. Mike Tipping, D-Orono, one of several lawmakers announcing endorsements of Platner on Thursday.
Tipping noted that he won his rural district by just 1 percentage point, while Trump won it by 2. He linked Collins to Trump, a recurring theme among Democrats running for office across Maine, saying she “betrayed the people she was elected to serve.”
Mills did not endorse Platner in her withdrawal statement. Two had not spoken as of the news conference. Platner still faces a third candidate in the Democratic primary, David Costello, the 2024 U.S. Senate nominee who said Thursday he is staying in the race.
But minutes after the governor’s announcement, top Maine Democrats lined up behind him, with gubernatorial candidates Shenna Bellows and Nirav Shah among the first to offer endorsements.
The show of institutional support quickly spread beyond state politics. Senate Majority PAC, part of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s political operation, issued a statement backing Platner, the first such signal from Schumer’s orbit after the Maine candidate said in a podcast interview with Jon Stewart this week that neither that operation nor the Democratic National Committee had any contact with his campaign.
“Now, it’s up to us to make sure Graham has the resources he needs to win this seat that has been held by Republicans since 1979,” the DNC said in a fundraising email.
Republicans wasted no time sharpening their attacks. Senate Republicans’ campaign arm called Platner “a phony who is too extreme for Maine,” while Senate Leadership Fund Executive Director Alex Latcham — whose group has pledged $42 million to support Collins — said the incumbent would “grind Platner into dust.”
“Platner’s record presents a target-rich environment for the GOP,” said Christopher Nicholas, a Republican consultant. “And even he can’t remember everything he’s said or done.”
Mills’ exit prompted a strong reaction from Washington. U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pennsylvania, who often crosses party lines, offered the most colorful assessment of Platner’s emergence, telling NOTUS: “Democrats really, really like Platner in Maine, but the Republicans f—ing love him.”
Mills’ attack ads from March highlighted his social media comments from years ago, including suggestions that rural Mainers were racist and unintelligent, and blaming survivors of sexual assault. The governor and other critics also pinpointed his Nazi-linked tattoo that he covered after it was reported in October. Platner has apologized for his past comments.
Collins, who criticized both Platner and Mills in jabs at the Maine Republican Party’s convention Friday, showed restraint when asked about Mills’ exit in Washington, telling CNN it was “the governor’s day.”
“I’m sure this was a difficult decision for [Gov.] Mills, and I thank her for her decades of service to the people of Maine,” the senator said in a statement.
