Maine oysterman stirring up Democrats' efforts to oust Susan Collins

Yahoo

13 hours ago

Sullivan resident Graham Platner, a veteran and oysterman, announced his bid for the Democratic nomination to challenge U.S. Sen. Susan Collins on Aug. 19, 2026. (Photo courtesy of Graham for Senate)
A largely unknown oysterman and military veteran, Graham Platner garnered widespread attention this week when he launched a U.S. Senate campaign to try to unseat long-time Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins.
Most of the candidates running against Collins so far are political newcomers like Graham, but his splashy campaign launch in the The New York Times and team of progressive strategists with records of successfully running against establishment Democrats has set him apart.
While running on progressive ideas — universal healthcare, raising the minimum wage, strengthening unions — Platner is clearly trying to appeal to Maine's independent thinking, rejecting the label of liberal while embracing a working man's pitch to appeal to supporters of President Donald Trump.
It's also unclear what his candidacy now means for national Democrats' efforts to convince Gov. Janet Mills to run.
The governor, who is termed out next year, gained a national profile after she told Trump in February 'see you in court' over Maine's law that allows transgender athletes to compete on girls' sports teams. Now, some are hoping she'll run for federal office, but she hasn't decided yet.
Earlier this month, Mills, known locally as a moderate Democrat, said she was 'assessing everything' and 'would think seriously about it.' According to CNN, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York has personally spoken with Mills about the race.
Without an explicit answer, some other potential Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate are holding out on entering the race, including Speaker of the Maine House Ryan Fecteau and the owner of Maine Brewing Company, Dan Kleban.
Not all Democrats are waiting. Six lesser-known names filed to run before Platner — including Jordan Wood, a progressive former congressional aide, and David Costello, who unsuccessfully tried to unseat Maine's other U.S. senator, independent Angus King, in 2024.
'All of the other higher profile Democrats have, at least so far, decided, 'Well, we're going to run for the open governor's [seat],'' said Mark Brewer, chair of the political science department at the University of Maine. The 2026 gubernatorial race has received far greater action with 18 official candidates already and others contemplating bids.
'Part of that is Mills freezing the field, so to speak,' Brewer said. 'But it's not just that.'
Democrats thought they had Collins last time, Brewer pointed out. Her Democratic opponent, Sara Gideon, then-Speaker of the Maine House, far outspent Collins and polls had Gideon leading. Then Collins won by almost 9%. Brewer said he thinks the fact that prominent Maine Democrats opted for gubernatorial bids rather than Collins' seat 'speaks to the fact that she's going to be tough to take down.'
Eyeing a sixth term, Collins is facing pressure from both sides
Collins told Maine Morning Star in the spring she intends to run for reelection in 2026. Although she has yet to officially launch a campaign, she raised $2.4 million to close the quarter with more than $5 million on hand.
When asked in the spring why she thinks she remains the best person to represent the state, Collins highlighted her record of delivering for Maine, primarily financially. That ability has been increasingly tested and upended during Trump's second term.
As for a primary challenge, Maine Republicans and Trump have rejected the idea, though someone familiar with the conversation told Politico recently that the president would love to see a 'better option.' Brewer said, in his view, 'it's hard to envision another Republican winning statewide in a two-person race besides Collins.'
So far, two little-known Republicans are running. One independent candidate has also thrown his hat in the ring.
With 15 months until the election, Democrats in the running for Collins' seat include Platner, Wood, Costello, Tucker Favreau, Andrea LaFlamme, Natasha Alcala and Daira Rodriguez, according to Federal Election Commission filings.
Platner was born in Blue Hill and raised in Ellsworth and Sullivan, where he launched his campaign on Tuesday. He enlisted in the Marine Corps after high school and served three deployments to Iraq. After attending George Washington University on the G.I. Bill, he then enrolled in the Army National Guard and served in Afghanistan.
Following his service, he started working on an oyster farm on Frenchman Bay, which he now runs. He is also chair of the planning board and harbormaster in Sullivan.
Platner wasted no time critiquing Collins during his campaign launch. In his video announcement, which was produced by Morris Katz, a top admaker for New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani, he said, 'I'm not afraid to name an enemy. And the enemy is the oligarchy. It's the billionaires who pay for it and the politicians who sell us out. And yeah, that means politicians like Susan Collins.'
Other candidates have also made similar pitches about Collins, including Wood, who said the senator 'hasn't fixed the system — she's become part of it,' in a statement last month in which he announced his fundraising totals so far. Aside from Collins, he's raised the most — $1.6 million as of June 30. He's had the most public campaign presence so far, hosting town halls across the state.
Wood, a Bristol resident, previously told Maine Morning Star his top priorities will be anti-corruption reform and getting big money out of politics.
Wood spent about a decade working in politics in Washington, D.C, including as chief of staff to former Democratic U.S. Rep. Katie Porter of California. He helped lead democracyFIRST, an organization aimed to combat threats to free and fair elections, and End Citizens United, a political action committee working to reverse the U.S. Supreme Court decision that enabled corporations and other outside groups to spend unlimited money on elections.
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The sole independent candidate, Rench of Waterboro, has raised the next most, just over $54,000.
Rench owns Ossipee Hill Farm and Observatory. He was a former senior engineer at Elon Musk's SpaceX, though he told Maine Morning Star he now has no association with Musk or the company aside from stocks he was awarded as an employee. He returned to Maine in 2020 to raise his children and build a produce farm. He also sat on the board for the Maine Space Corporation from June 2023 until June 2025.
Other candidates have raised little to no funds so far, in part because their recent announcements fell close to the end of the quarter.
Costello, who announced his bid in June and has no contributions filed with the FEC so far, is a familiar face in past U.S. Senate candidate pools.
He unsuccessfully ran for independent Sen Angus King's seat in 2024. He was active in state and federal government campaigns before spending several years working for the U.S. government abroad through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which Trump dismantled earlier this year.
Favreau, who also filed to run in June, has raised $4,724 in contributions so far. Born in Brunswick, Favreau enlisted in the U.S. Army in 2009 after high school and eventually commissioned as an officer in the recently established cyber branch. Since moving back to Maine following the end of his service in 2021, he has continued to work in cybersecurity at Cisco Talos.
LaFlamme of Bangor is the chapter president for adjunct faculty of Maine's Community Colleges with the Maine Service Employees Association, Local 1989 of the Service Employees International Union, and an adjunct professor at the University of Maine, teaching courses in Women's Studies, particularly Women's Health and the Environment and Reproductive Health.
Alcala of Madawaska is a fashion designer who moved to Maine from California about four years ago. She has degrees in international relations and criminal justice and is a U.S. Navy veteran. Alcala previously filed to run against U.S. Sen. Angus King in 2024 but withdrew before the primary.
Little is known about Rodriguez, who just filed with the FEC on Aug. 15 and lists an address of a Washington, D.C. PO Box.
LaFlamme, Alcala and Rodriguez all have zero contributions filed with the FEC so far. That's also the case for the two Republicans who have filed to run.
Calabrese of Kennebunkport moved to Maine five years ago from Florida and is a driver for Walmart and former small business owner. Smeriglio of Frenchville runs the rightwing Voice of the People USA radio and activist group. He is a U.S. Army veteran and former police officer, according to his website.
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