Women describe unsettling behavior by Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner

Women who dated Graham Platner described a pattern of conduct they said ranged from charming to unsettling, adding a new layer of scrutiny to a Maine Senate race already shaped by scandal and national stakes. One former girlfriend alleged he yanked her from a cab by the wrist, twisted her arm behind her back and forced her into a bedroom; Platner denied that account.

The accounts come as Platner, a Democrat running in Maine’s June 9, 2026, U.S. Senate primary, has stayed near the top of both primary and general-election polling despite a series of controversies. Janet Mills suspended her Senate campaign in late April, leaving Platner as one of three Democrats on the ballot and making the nomination fight a critical prelude to a November race against Republican Sen. Susan Collins that could help decide control of the Senate.

Six women who had been romantically involved with Platner described their experiences, with three speaking positively about him and others calling him charming but also intimidating, disturbing, toxic or volatile. Platner has said some of the relationships took place during “the darkest time of my life,” before he received extensive therapy for combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder. Another former girlfriend said the incidents she described happened more than a decade ago, underscoring how old behavior is now being weighed against Platner’s public ambitions.

The latest accounts land on top of earlier political damage. Platner’s campaign confirmed that he exchanged sexually explicit texts with multiple women while married to his wife, Amy Gertner. Gertner defended the marriage in a statement, dismissing a former friend’s account as “malicious gossip” and saying the couple went to counseling and emerged “stronger than ever before.” Platner later acknowledged the texts, while his campaign payroll also included Gertner as volunteer coordinator.

Platner has also faced scrutiny over now-deleted online posts and a tattoo resembling a Nazi Totenkopf that he later covered up. Rep. Ro Khanna, one of his prominent supporters, said Platner should apologize to the women who came forward describing disturbing behavior. Platner has denied the abuse allegations and said Mainers care more about hospital closures, Social Security, housing and heating bills than the controversy surrounding his personal life. He has continued meeting voters as the primary neared, insisting he is still the Democrats’ best chance to defeat Collins in November.