President Trump weighed in on the Maine Democratic Senate primary, targeting the victor, Graham Platner, with harsh criticism. The president labeled the progressive oyster farmer a “low-level thug” during his comments to reporters at the White House, The Hill reported. This sharp verbal attack highlights the intense scrutiny surrounding the candidate as the general election season officially kicks off in the Pine Tree State.
Platner secured his spot on the November ballot by winning the Democratic primary on Tuesday. His path to the nomination was decisive in terms of vote share, as he captured 72 percent of the vote with over 95 percent of the ballots tallied.
According to data from Decision Desk HQ, more than 143,000 ballots were cast for Platner. Despite the controversy surrounding his campaign, he managed to outperform Sara Gideon, who was the Democratic Senate candidate in 2020. Gideon received about 70 percent of the vote share during her primary with close to 113,000 ballots cast at that time.
While the numbers suggest a strong performance, Platner’s campaign has been anything but smooth
Recent reports have brought significant negative attention to the candidate. Investigations have revealed that Platner sent sexually explicit messages to multiple women early in his marriage. Furthermore, interviews with several of his past girlfriends have surfaced, with some alleging that he was physically rough with them. There have also been questions regarding a tattoo that resembled a Nazi symbol. Platner has denied the allegations of physical roughness and has stated that he was unaware of what the tattoo represented before he had it covered.
The president expressed frustration that Democrats have not addressed these allegations more directly. “You’ll have Schumer, he goes crazy over this or that or Epstein … this guy, why aren’t they talking about him?” the president asked, referring to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. He continued his criticism by stating, “This guy’s got a rap sheet, I’ve never seen anything like it.”
He further emphasized his disdain for the candidate by adding, “He’s a low-level thug, and he’s running to be senator.” He also called him a “cheap, no-good person” and remarked, “He’s worse than any human being that’s ever run for office probably.”
Despite the fallout, top Senate Democrats are maintaining their support for the nominee. Both Chuck Schumer and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, who serves as the chair of the Senate Democrats’ campaign arm, have stood by him. In a formal statement, they noted, “In November, Maine voters will elect Graham Platner, and we will win a Senate majority.” They are clearly looking past the current controversies to focus on the goal of securing the Senate majority this fall.
Platner himself has attempted to keep the focus on his platform rather than his personal history. He recently addressed the potential for more damaging stories to emerge. He said, “There is nothing out there that is going to be — will run counter to any of the stories that I’ve talked about openly this entire campaign.”
When speaking to his supporters on Tuesday, he framed his candidacy as part of a larger mission. He said, “Maine, I love you. I love this state. Now the national pundits, the political establishment, they keep looking for that one story, that one headline, that one moment in my life that they can define the campaign by, but in trying so hard to understand me, they failed to understand that this is not about me at all.” He added, “This is a movement about us, about the far too many working far too hard and struggling far too much at the hands of the ruling class.”
The primary results also showed that some voters were clearly conflicted. Political observers were watching to see if a significant number of people would vote for outgoing Governor Janet Mills, who had suspended her bid but remained on the ballot as a protest option. Mills managed to garner just shy of 20 percent of the vote, with about 38,000 votes counted by Wednesday afternoon. David Costello also participated in the race, receiving over 8 percent support with more than 16,000 ballots.
As the race moves forward, the contest against incumbent Republican Susan Collins is expected to be one of the most significant Senate battles of the year. Republicans have already started to leverage the recent controversies to attack the Democratic nominee. With the general election approaching, the focus will likely remain on whether these scandals continue to impact the candidate’s standing with voters in Maine.
Published: Jun 10, 2026 03:30 pm