On a crisp Election Day across the pine-tree lined districts of Maine, BBC reporters sat down with Democratic voters to unpack the driving forces behind their support for their party’s controversial U.S. Senate candidate, who is set to take on longtime Republican incumbent Susan Collins this election cycle.
Across multiple conversations, a consistent theme emerged: even with the well-documented controversy surrounding Platner, the vast majority of Democratic voters interviewed made clear they see no better alternative to unseat Collins. Many respondents framed their choice not as an enthusiastic endorsement of every position Platner has taken over his career, but as a strategic and ideological commitment to flipping the Senate seat held by Collins, a figure who has become a polarizing force in Maine politics over her decades in Washington.
Several voters acknowledged the criticisms that have dogged Platner’s campaign, from past policy stances that have angered some progressive factions of the party to ethical questions raised by opposing groups. Yet even with these concerns top of mind, nearly all interviewees reiterated the phrase echoed across the state: ‘There is no one else.’
Background context for this race: Collins, first elected to the Senate in 1996, has long held a reputation as a moderate Republican willing to cross party lines. But in recent years, shifting national political dynamics have made her seat a top target for national Democrats, who have poured resources into flipping it to help maintain or gain partisan control of the upper chamber. Platner, the Democratic nominee, emerged from a crowded primary field, but his nomination left some factions of the state party dissatisfied, leading to ongoing questions about whether rank-and-file Democratic voters would turn out to support him in the general election.
The on-the-ground interviews from Election Day, however, suggest that concerns about voter apathy around Platner’s controversial candidacy may be overstated. Voters repeatedly emphasized that their top priority is replacing Collins, and that even with his flaws, Platner is the only candidate who can deliver that outcome for Maine. Many noted that they have supported Democratic candidates for statewide and national office for years, and that defeating what they frame as extreme GOP leadership in Washington is the defining issue of this election for them, outweighing any concerns they hold about their own party’s nominee.