PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Democrats in Maine began jockeying Thursday to become the new candidate for a pivotal U.S. Senate seat after progressive nominee Graham Platner announced he will withdraw from the race after a sexual assault allegation.
Democrats need to pick a candidate to replace Platner on the ballot by July 27, according to state law. Whoever is selected will have less than four months before facing longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins in the general election. Potential candidates had already been teasing their interest before Platner, who denies the allegation, announced he intends to drop out. Platner is expected to file paperwork to formally withdraw on Monday, the deadline to do so.
But a growing number began formally launching their campaigns Thursday.
The Maine Democratic Party has said it will hold a nominating convention to choose the replacement. The party says the convention will involve hundreds of delegates from across the state, but how and when that’ll take place remains unknown.
Maine is considered a key state for control of the narrowly divided Senate, and Democrats are desperate for a candidate capable of defeating Collins while President Donald Trump is broadly unpopular.
Gov. Janet Mills, who sought the nomination during the primary campaign and suspended her campaign in late April, has not indicated if she's interested in running.
These are some of the people who have shown interest in the Maine Senate race:
Troy Jackson
Jackson is Maine’s former state Senate president. He unsuccessfully ran to be the Democratic nominee for governor earlier this year with the backing of Platner and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders. Shortly after Platner said he would quit the Senate race, Jackson launched his campaign, arguing that Mainers want “a progressive fighter." Our Revolution, the organization founded by Sanders, has since said it would back Jackson, 58.
Jackson released a statement with dozens of endorsements, many from current and former state and local officials, on Thursday.
Nirav Shah
Shah, former director of Maine’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention, announced Thursday he was vying to be the next Democratic Senate candidate. He came in second in this year’s Maine Democratic governor's primary and was seen as more of a moderate candidate compared with Jackson while running for governor. Shah held a news conference Thursday in which he encouraged Platner supporters to join him.
“You have an important place in this campaign and we welcome your voices,” Shah said. “This campaign represents the values that we all care about.”
Dan Kleban
The co-founder of Maine Beer Company, Kleban also confirmed his candidacy on Wednesday after Platner's announcement. Kleban briefly entered the Senate race last year before dropping out when Gov. Janet Mills announced her candidacy. Kleban, 49, endorsed Mills, who later dropped out of the Democratic primary.
“I'm ready to fight for Mainers and bring a new generation of leadership to Washington,” Kleban said.
Shenna Bellows
Bellows is Maine's secretary of state. She announced Thursday that she's running for the seat, saying she's spent her career “taking on tough fights and doing the right thing," where she's served as a former civil liberties advocate and sparred with President-elect Donald Trump over ballot access.
This wouldn't be her first time running for political office. Bellows, 51, placed fourth in the state’s Democratic governor's primary in June. And in 2014, Bellows ran against Collins as the Senate Democratic nominee and lost in a landslide.
Jordan Wood
Wood, 36, initially attempted to run in the Maine Democratic Senate primary last year but dropped out to run in the state's 2nd District. He lost that race, coming in third to state Auditor Matt Dunlap. He's since said he's interested in running for the Senate again, and announced on Thursday.
“To beat Susan Collins, we need a candidate who can provide a true contrast and run an unapologetically progressive campaign: Passing Medicare for All. Stopping ICE terrorizing our streets,” Wood wrote on social media on Tuesday.
Paige Loud
Loud filed paperwork to run for the Senate seat earlier this week. The 29-year-old social worker also ran in the state's 2nd District Democratic primary, but came in last during the state's first round of ranked choice voting.
Valli Geiger
Geiger, a previous Platner supporter and a state Democratic lawmaker, is another potential candidate. She hasn't announced her candidacy, but in an interview with MS NOW on Wednesday, Geiger, 70, said she would hire Platner's staff, whom she described as “deeply impassioned and confident young people.”
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Kruesi reported from Providence, R.I.
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Follow the AP’s coverage of the 2026 election at https://apnews.com/projects/elections-2026/.
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