Senator Cory Booker expressed doubt about Democratic nominee Graham Platner's viability in Maine's US Senate race Sunday, following reports that Platner sent sexually explicit messages to women other than his wife.
"Yes, I have concerns," Booker said on ABC's This Week when asked about the revelations. "That guy has questions to answer and that's what campaigns are for."
The New York Times and Wall Street Journal reported Saturday that Amy Gertner, Platner's wife, discovered the explicit texts on her husband's phone in spring 2025 and shared them with Genevieve McDonald, the campaign's political director at the time. McDonald subsequently resigned from the campaign in October 2025.
McDonald's departure followed the emergence of controversial Reddit posts Platner made between 2009 and 2021, as well as reports about a Nazi symbol tattoo. In a statement to the Times, McDonald said the Senate "is not a training ground for redemption. It is a place for proven leaders with moral clarity and integrity."
Gertner, who married Platner in 2023, defended her decision to keep the couple's struggles private. She said the couple entered marriage counseling after she discovered the messages and criticized McDonald for leaking details she had shared in confidence.
"I confided deeply personal details about my marriage to someone I considered a friend," Gertner said. "I trusted this person with the most private chapter of our lives, the early days of our marriage before any campaign was on our mind."
Platner is the presumptive Democratic nominee heading into a June 9 primary contest. He will face Republican Senator Susan Collins in November's general election if he secures the nomination. Maine Governor Janet Mills dropped out of the Democratic race in April.
Booker framed his concerns within the larger context of Democratic hopes to control Congress, emphasizing the stakes of the midterm election as Donald Trump's second presidency progresses. He cited rising prices and unresolved issues like the war in Iran as reasons Democrats must gain seats in the House and Senate.
"So much is riding on Democrats taking control," Booker said. "If we do not get the votes necessary to take care of the House and the Senate, we will continue to have an out-of-control president."
Author James Rodriguez: "Booker's public skepticism signals real trouble for Platner in a must-win race, and the candidate's marital defense won't quiet questions about his judgment."
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