Khanna Backs Platner’s Senate Bid 2 Days Before Primary as Abuse Allegations Roil Maine Race
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jun 7
Khanna Backs Platner’s Senate Bid 2 Days Before Primary as Abuse Allegations Roil Maine Race
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jun 7
Summary
Two days before Maine’s Democratic primary, Ro Khanna said he still supports Senate candidate Graham Platner, calling his past conduct “misogynistic” and “shameful” but saying voters already knew much of it.
Khanna argued Platner had taken accountability for explicit messages and other behavior from what Platner describes as a PTSD- and alcohol-fueled period after two Iraq tours, while warning any proof of domestic violence or assault would be a “zero tolerance” line.
Lyndsey Fifield told the New York Times Platner grabbed her hard enough to leave marks, yanked her from a cab and once forced her into a bedroom; Khanna said he believes her and urged Platner’s campaign to stop attacking her.
Platner denied allegations of physicality and said broader claims were politically motivated, while his campaign cast Fifield as a Republican operative as the race shifts from a challenge to Susan Collins into a test of Democratic vetting.