Democrats have chosen a replacement for Maine Senate hopeful Graham Platner after he suspended his campaign amid a sexual assault allegation.
On Saturday, the Maine Democratic Party formally selected Troy Jackson as its new Senate nominee in the race to unseat longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins, who has represented the state for 29 years.
“This is the absolute honor of my life,” Jackson said when accepting his nomination at a convention center in downtown Bangor, Maine.
“If you’ve ever been ignored, underestimated, pushed around or told that you have to wait your turn while the rich cut the line, I’m asking you to stand with us in this campaign,” he added.
Jackson, 58, is a fifth-generation logger from northern Maine and a former president of the Maine Senate. A longtime lawmaker, he began his political career as a Republican before later switching to the Democratic Party. He mounted an unsuccessful bid for governor earlier this year.
The switch comes as Democrats scramble to salvage one of the country’s most closely watched Senate races.
Platner, 41, an oyster farmer and former Marine, won the Democratic nomination last month in a bid to unseat Collins, 73, but suspended his campaign after a woman with whom he had a previous on-and-off relationship accused him of rape stemming from an alleged 2021 incident.
Jenny Racicot, a Maine resident who first disclosed the allegation to Politico and CNN, accused Platner of coming to her home uninvited, entering without permission, and ignoring her refusals before allegedly raping her in her bedroom. She said Platner appeared to be nearly blackout drunk during the encounter.
In response to the allegations, Platner posted an 11-minute video announcing the suspension of his campaign and denying the claims, while vowing that “we’re going to win someday.”
Republicans wasted no time turning their attention to Jackson, launching attack ads that portray him as hot-tempered and seek to tie him to Platner. The Senate Leadership Fund, the GOP’s main Senate super PAC, has committed more than $42 million to oppose Jackson, according to the Associated Press.
The new Democratic nominee, chosen by party delegates, now has just months to make his case to voters before November’s election, while Collins enters the race with an early advantage.
The veteran Republican senator branded her opponent a “Bernie Bro,” pointing to his support for the 84-year-old senator’s presidential campaigns and Sanders’ endorsement of Jackson during his own gubernatorial bid.
Meanwhile, Jackson told supporters, some of whom held “Retire Susan” signs, according to The Washington Post, that his campaign represented a broader grassroots movement. “This movement is not from the left. It’s not from the right. It’s from the bottom — and we are growing,” he said.
