Gov. Janet Mills (D-ME) is reminding Maine voters she remains on the ballot as pressure mounts for Democratic front-runner Graham Platner to drop out as each successive scandal jeopardizes Democrats’ chances of flipping a crucial Senate race.
Mills, who suspended her campaign in April, is flirting with the idea of stepping back into the race ahead of Tuesday’s primary.
A source close to Mills’s campaign said on Friday that “people across Maine are reaching out to tell her they’re voting for her and encouraging her to get fully back into the race,” according to reports.
Platner, a progressive oyster farmer who boxed Mills out of the race after establishing healthy leads in fundraising and polling, has faced a slew of controversies ranging from having a Nazi tattoo to sending explicit messages to other women while married.
The latest scandal, reported by the New York Times, details allegations from former girlfriends, who described Platner’s behavior in the relationships as “toxic” and “emotionally wrenching.”
The news, which broke the same week Platner barnstormed Washington, D.C., to meet with senators in an attempt to assuage concerns over his character, has roiled the Democratic Party as it stares down a must-win race against Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME).
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) stopped short of saying Platner should drop out of the race but told the Washington Examiner that voters in Maine will make their own decision between the governor and Platner.
“That’s their call, not mine,” Fetterman said.
But it might be too little.
Mills has not taken meaningful steps to reignite her campaign, and even while active on the trail, she lacked the energy compared to Platner, who routinely attracted large crowds at rallies. She’ll appear on Tuesday’s ballot, but early voting began May 14, while Mills suspended her campaign at the end of April.
Even as new Platner scandals broke weekly, Mills has shown little interest in restarting her bid until this week. The will-she-won’t-she act drew criticism from influential Democratic commentators. Tommy Vietor, co-host of Pod Save America, rebuked Mills in a post on social media Friday.
“I don’t get what Mills is doing here,” wrote Vietor. “Run or don’t run! Everyone is worried about this race and desperate to win it, but her response throughout has just been to half-ass her way through it.”
Even if Platner were to win Tuesday’s primary, as he’s favored to do, Mills has one final prayer. Maine law permits Platner to withdraw his candidacy by July 13, allowing the state Democratic Party to choose his replacement.
But it’s not clear Mills would be the front-runner to become the nominee. She had roughly $700,000 on hand in her campaign account as of the last filing period, per FEC records, and would have a significant cash disadvantage to Collins, who had nearly $10 million on hand.
The Washington Examiner reached out to Mills’s campaign for comment.
GOLDEN RULES OUT REPLACING PLATNER ON BALLOT AMID SCANDALS
There are also a number of Democratic candidates running for other offices in Maine, such as former state House Speaker Hannah Pingree, Angus King III, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, and former state Sen. Troy Jackson, all of whom are running for governor, who could possibly be viable candidates. Pingree is the daughter of Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME), and King is the son of Sen. Angus King (I-ME).
Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) told the Washington Examiner on Thursday he was not interested in running for Senate.
Ramsey Touchberry contributed to this report.