Graham Platner, the presumptive Democratic Party nominee for U.S. Senate in Maine, is facing new allegations that he engaged in disturbing sexual activity with a number of women.
The bombshell report from the New York Times notes that Platner, in the days leading up to the story’s release, contacted former girlfriends amid circulating rumors about his personal life. These rumors followed earlier news coverage of sexually explicit text messages he sent to other women while married.
Three women interviewed by The Times described volatile and “toxic” relationships that were unsettling and emotionally difficult at times. According to these women, Platner could be charming and charismatic but was also demeaning toward women. In at least one instance, they said his behavior was physically threatening.
They also reported that he drank heavily and was regularly unfaithful during those periods. All told, The Times reporters Katie Glueck and Lisa Lerer spoke with more than two dozen people prior to the story’s release.
Platner’s campaign has not issued a detailed public response to the specific accounts in this latest report as of the article’s publication. Earlier, in response to the texting revelations, Platner and his wife, Amy Gertner, said that the couple addressed issues in their marriage through counseling and maintain a strong relationship.
Gertner described media coverage of the texts as “shameful” and expressed disappointment over the disclosure of private information by a former campaign aide.
Three women who dated Graham Platner, the Democratic candidate for Senate in Maine, told The New York Times they found his actions intimidating and disturbing, describing volatile relationships. https://t.co/ClaeKxVUEs
— The New York Times (@nytimes) June 4, 2026
Throughout the campaign, Platner has been linked to a number of additional controversies. These include a tattoo on his chest, obtained years earlier, that resembled a symbol associated with Nazi imagery. He had it covered up after it drew public attention and attributed related past statements to untreated PTSD from his military service in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Additionally, old Reddit posts attributed to Platner contained offensive language, including remarks on topics such as sexual assault, along with slurs and other inflammatory content. In one post, Platner commented on a video of a U.S. soldier being wounded in Afghanistan and stated that he wished they had been killed.
The Democrat has disavowed these posts and chalked them up to untreated PTSD.
