Democrats Refuse To Answer Questions About Platner

Democratic senators are continuing to keep their distance from the growing controversy surrounding Graham Platner, the Democratic candidate hoping to unseat longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins in Maine, even as a series of resurfaced comments threaten to complicate what many Democrats viewed as one of their strongest pickup opportunities in 2026.

When approached by Fox News Digital this week, several Democratic lawmakers either declined to weigh in directly on Platner’s past remarks or said they were not closely following the race.

“I’m not following that race closely,” Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said when asked about the controversy surrounding Platner.

That response has become fairly representative of how Democratic senators are handling questions about the Maine candidate, whose old online posts about sexual assault, race, and terrorism have drawn renewed scrutiny in recent months.

The silence has left unanswered questions about whether national Democrats believe Platner’s past comments could seriously damage his viability in a general election against Collins, a Republican incumbent who has repeatedly proven difficult to defeat despite representing a state that often leans Democratic in presidential elections.

The Maine Senate race is viewed by Democrats as one of their best chances to flip a Republican-held seat. Collins, who has served in the Senate since 1997, has long cultivated a moderate image that has allowed her to survive politically even as Maine has shifted leftward in national races.

Her last re-election victory came in 2020, when she defeated Democratic challenger Sara Gideon by roughly nine points, winning 51 percent of the vote to Gideon’s 42.4 percent.

Now Democrats face the possibility that Platner’s past comments could become a major liability if he secures the nomination.

Among the most controversial posts to resurface was a 2013 Reddit comment in which Platner appeared to blame sexual assault victims for placing themselves in vulnerable situations.

“How about people just take some responsibility for themselves and not so f—ed up when they wind up having sex with someone they don’t mean to?” Platner wrote at the time.