Graham Platner is asking Democrats a question that has haunted the party since 2016: How much scandal is too much when control of the Senate hangs in the balance?
The Maine Senate candidate has weathered a remarkable cascade of controversies in recent months. The Wall Street Journal and New York Times reported he exchanged sexually explicit texts with at least half a dozen women while married. His wife discovered the messages during the campaign's vetting process and reported them internally. Before that came old Reddit posts in which he downplayed rape and made insulting comments about Black people. And earlier, he covered up a Nazi symbol tattoo he had inked on his chest in 2007, only doing so after entering the race.
Platner has apologized for the online writings, calling them crude and indefensible. He said he didn't realize the tattoo carried Nazi significance. His wife Amy Gertner released a video after the texting story broke, calling it shameful that media outlets would focus on personal matters rather than his policy platform.
Yet Platner's campaign has only accelerated. Maine Governor Janet Mills, his Democratic primary opponent, dropped out in late April after polling showed her losing badly to him. A University of New Hampshire survey from late May showed Platner leading Republican Senator Susan Collins by 9 points in a general election matchup. Much of the Democratic establishment has fallen behind him, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who previously backed Mills.
The situation has exposed a fault line within the party. Some Democrats say the party must not adopt the GOP's willingness to overlook personal misconduct. Rep. Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts told CNN that Platner's tattoo and his explanation for it are disqualifying, warning that embracing such a candidate would be politically unwise. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey expressed concerns about the sexting reports, saying Platner has questions to answer.
For others, particularly progressives focused on Senate control, winning takes priority. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's former chief of staff, congressional candidate Saikat Chakrabarti, attacked Auchincloss for what he saw as effectively endorsing Collins, calling it unacceptable for any House Democrat to back a Republican in a crucial swing race.
The Platner case mirrors the 2016 moment when Republicans nominated and elected Donald Trump despite multiple scandals that had previously ended political careers. But there are differences. Trump has never apologized for his conduct, while Platner has expressed contrition. A Senate race carries different stakes than a presidential election. And Maine remains a must-win state for Democrats seeking to maintain leverage in the chamber.
The fundamental question is whether Democrats have learned the same lesson Republicans absorbed eight years ago: once voters stop treating scandal as disqualifying, party leaders who police their own side face accusations of unilateral disarmament. Maine voters and national Democrats will soon answer whether they're willing to apply that calculus to their own side.
Author James Rodriguez: "Platner's rise tests whether the scandal tolerance Republicans pioneered in the Trump era has become a mainstream feature of politics, or whether Democrats will draw a line this time."
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