Scandal-plagued Democrat victorious in Maine | Political News

Scandal-ridden Graham Platner received the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Maine on Tuesday night, despite the swirl of controversies he is discovered himself embroiled in over the past few months.

The Democrat ran for the possibility to face off against longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins in the November midterm elections — a contest Democrats see as a must-win as the celebration makes an attempt to wrest control of the Senate.

Platner’s path to the nomination grew simpler back in late April, when Democratic Gov. Janet Mills dropped out of the race, citing a lack of money. Her title still appeared on the first ballots, however, because she suspended her marketing campaign late in the race.

David Costello was the only other Democratic candidate operating. He’s a former authorities official from Maryland who hasn’t campaigned very aggressively.

Platner mired in political controversy as his victory establishes take a look at for GOP in November

Platner has been dogged by political controversy throughout his marketing campaign. intimacyually specific textual content messages he reportedly despatched to ladies while he was married and some former girlfriends’ claims that he had a tendency to be demeaning toward ladies had been uncovered in current weeks.

Platner hasn’t straight denied the allegations, but has accused the media of “running gossip,” according to the Associated Press.

Old online feedback he made that appeared to endorse political violence, dismiss rape in the navy and criticize both police officers and rural America surfaced last 12 months. For those feedback, he apologized, stating that he was struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder and depression when he wrote them.

Platner also confronted questions about a skull-and-crossbones tattoo acknowledged as a Nazi image. He said he received the tattoo on his chest during a night time of ingesting while on depart in Croatia and maintained that he was unaware until not too long ago that it is likely to be related with Nazis. He has since coated it with a different design. But while he insisted that he did not know its origin, a former girlfriend of his told The New York Times that he did.

Last week, the NYT reported on allegations from other earlier girlfriends, who called him risky and insulting. One lady went so far as to say Platner twisted her arm during an argument and then locked her in a room. His marketing campaign disputed that allegation.

“There are some allegations in this piece that are simply not true. Anything alleging physicality, anything alleging I knew what my tattoo was, these are the statements of somebody politically motivated,” Platner said of the NYT piece. “That is not true.”

Platner’s background has made some Democrats anxious about their potential to flip the important seat in November.

At an event days before Tuesday’s main, he said he needs to “take this seat back for working Mainers” by beating Collins.

“We can build a government by working people, for working people,” he said during a Friday rally close to Bar Harbor. “We need to build a world in which everyone in this country has the time to live up to their full potential.”