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PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Graham Platner won the Maine Democratic primary for U.S. Senate on Tuesday, setting up a high-stakes race against Republican Sen. Susan Collins.
Platner, an oyster farmer and former chair of the planning board in the small town of Sullivan, has little political experience but has drawn hundreds of people to rallies around the state. He also has faced a string of controversies that have been the focus of attacks from his rivals. Yet, since entering the race, Platner has stressed the importance of believing in redemption for those like him who have made mistakes but are now working to be better people.
“If you believe, as I do, that we can change our politics and change our country, then you must also believe that people can change,” Platner said during his acceptance speech in Blue Hill, a rural town where he was born. “And the reason I believe that is because I have lived it.”
Democrats see Maine as a top opportunity to flip a GOP-held seat. It is the only state with a competitive Senate race where voters supported Democrat Kamala Harris over Donald Trump in 2024. Collins is the only Republican senator from New England.
Platner, a progressive who had early support from Sen. Bernie Sanders, has said he plans to focus on economic issues such as housing an...
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