Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner said Monday his campaign is considering “the best path forward” after Politico reported that a woman he previously dated had accused him of sexual assault, an allegation the candidate denies.

Jenny Racicot, 41, of Maine said that Platner — whom she said she had casually dated on and off from 2019 to 2021 — entered her home one night late in 2021, uninvited and deeply intoxicated, and forced her to have sex despite her telling him to stop, according to the news outlet.

Racicot also detailed the allegations in a lengthy interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, describing the accusations after they were first reported by Politico.

In a statement provided to Politico and subsequently obtained by MS NOW, Platner called the allegations “troubling, serious, and false.”

“Any accusation of non-consensual behavior is categorically untrue,” he said.

The scandal-plagued candidate repeated that statement in a video posted to X shortly after the Politico story published, in which he also said his campaign is “taking the time to reflect on the best path forward.”

Under Maine law, a candidate nominated for office has until the second Monday in July to withdraw for any reason, giving Platner a week to make a final decision.

Racicot previously spoke to the New York Times for a story published last month in which she described Platner’s behavior as “unsettling” and “reckless,” but did not detail the allegations that were reported by Politico on Monday.

Racicot gave details on her latest allegations to Politico in a series of three interviews over the past two weeks, the outlet reported. Politico also said it had reviewed a recent email exchange between Racicot and her therapist in which she discussed talking to the media about her relationship with Platner and what she described as the “sa/rape,” using an abbreviation for sexual assault. The outlet said it also had reviewed private Facebook messages Racicot had exchanged with an acquaintance in 2023 warning them not to get involved with Platner. According to Politico, in those messages Racicot described the now-candidate as “consensually careless,” saying he “doesn’t listen to you when drunk.”

The leadership of the Maine Democratic Party called on Platner to withdraw from the race following the Politico report, saying in a statement that they stand “with women and survivors, and that principle does not bend based on party affiliation.”

“This Senate race comes at a pivotal moment in the struggle against a government, supported by Senator Collins, that serves the interest of the wealthy and powerful at the expense of ordinary Maine people,” the officials said. “It is essential that we refocus this campaign on that struggle.”

That statement followed a call from former Democratic National Committee interim chair Donna Brazile for Platner to drop out. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., also said in public statements that they were rescinding their endorsements of him.

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, whom Platner is seeking to unseat, described the new allegations as “appalling” in a statement to MS NOW.

“These allegations are appalling. Nevertheless, it is not up to me to choose the Democratic nominee for Senate,” Collins said.

Platner, an oysterman and Iraq War veteran with no political experience before mounting his Senate campaign, won the Democratic primary last month after Maine Gov. Janet Mills dropped out of the race. His campaign has been beset by controversies and scandal for months, but his allies — and many Maine voters — have largely continued to publicly support him. Many of those allies, however, did not immediately respond to requests for comment from MS NOW Monday afternoon about whether they believe he should stay in the race following the latest Politico report.

Over the course of his campaign, Platner has admitted to sending sexually explicit text messages to women while he was married; apologized for writing derogatory comments on Reddit about women and victims of rape; denied an allegation he physically threatened a former girlfriend; and denied an allegation that he knew a former tattoo that he has since had covered up resembled a Nazi symbol.

Kevin Frey, Mychael Schnell and Ebony Davis contributed reporting.

The post Woman accuses Maine U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner of sexual assault appeared first on MS NOW.

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