BELFAST—On the afternoon of June 6, in a small city on the coast of Maine, older men and women thronged a two-storey house near a farmers’ market.
The campaign volunteers were there for a pep talk from Graham Platner, the Maine Democratic Senate hopeful who would go on to win his June 9 primary.
After the handshakes and the hugs, Platner and a staffer ambled over to a nearby pickup truck.
Platner did not respond to questions from The Epoch Times. Yet, as the general election season looms into view, the candidate will face more scrutiny as he seeks to unseat Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine).
In cities and towns throughout the Pine Tree State, locals had thoughts—and questions—concerning Platner.
Many supporters dismissed criticisms of the U.S. Marine Corps veteran, who has come under fire from the media over accusations of abuse, a Nazi tattoo he claims he did not understand, and other allegations tied to a past that once saw him tending bar at a popular tavern near the U.S. Capitol.
In Ellsworth, the location of Platner’s campaign headquarters, local supporter Eli Moss lauded Platner, who briefly attended the elite Hotchkiss School before his stint in the military and at George Washington University.
Moss told The Epoch Times that Platner is “an actual person that’s been involved with the working class, instead of just someone that grew up with the bourgeoisie.”
The Senate candidate has run as an economic populist in the socialist vein of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), questioning the number of billionaires in the United States and calling for a wealth tax.
Other Mainers voiced concerns about Platner. While policy and ideology remain factors, the candidate’s background is clearly in the foreground.
A short drive from Belfast in Searsport, Kate Johnson was selling books, dolls, and other items at a flea market, including merchandise for the anime Rave Master.
“I watched like one season, but I couldn’t get into it,” she said of Neon Genesis Evangelion, another anime.
The young anime fan was not a fan of Collins.
She said she was glad to learn about Platner’s opposition to President Donald Trump. Yet, she was disturbed to hear allegations that he abused some women he dated.
“If it’s all true, he’s a horrible person. You hurt anyone—woman, child, anyone—you don’t deserve to be anything for anyone,” she said.
The future of Maine—and the partisan balance of the Senate—could depend on just how divisive, and substantive, the allegations against him prove to be.
