A series of high-stakes U.S. Senate and congressional primary elections across four states have wrapped up, reshaping the battlefield for November’s critical midterm contests that will ultimately decide partisan control of Congress for the final stretch of Donald Trump’s presidential term. In the most closely watched upset, political novice Graham Platner – an oyster farmer and retired combat Marine who has never held public office – secured the Democratic Party’s Senate nomination in Maine, overcoming a string of damaging scandals to set up a generational showdown against long-serving Republican incumbent Susan Collins this fall.
Endorsed by high-profile independent Senator Bernie Sanders, Platner’s path to the nomination was far from smooth. His campaign was nearly derailed early on when reports emerged of a tattoo bearing a striking resemblance to a Nazi symbol. Platner quickly issued a public apology, claiming he had no knowledge of the symbol’s hateful origins, but the controversy still sparked widespread accusations of antisemitism, even from his own former political director. Later, additional scandals emerged: old online comments dismissing sexual assault were unearthed by media outlets, and reports detailed allegations of marital infidelity. Despite these headwinds, Platner’s campaign received a pivotal boost when popular Democratic Governor Janet Mills opted to exit the primary race, clearing a path for the non-traditional candidate to consolidate support from progressive and working-class voters. Platner’s candid, down-to-earth messaging – which centered on his lived experience with post-traumatic stress disorder from his military service and the economic challenges facing small business owners – resonated with a Democratic electorate increasingly open to backing outsiders over establishment politicians.
Come November, Platner will face off against Collins, who has represented Maine in the U.S. Senate for nearly 30 years. Collins has carved out a reputation as a moderate Republican over her career, drawing the ire of Trump’s conservative base in 2021 when she voted to convict Trump during his second impeachment trial. In recent years, however, she has shifted closer to the former president, playing a key role in advancing his judicial and executive nominee confirmations.
Meanwhile, in South Carolina’s Republican Senate primary, veteran incumbent Lindsey Graham fended off a hardline primary challenge from wealthy businessman Mark Lynch, who self-funded his campaign and attacked Graham for insufficient loyalty to Trump’s policy agenda. Lynch leaned on old 2016 footage of Graham praising President Joe Biden and criticizing Trump to bolster his case, and received backing from former Trump ally Marjorie Taylor Greene, the ex-Georgia congresswoman who split with Trump over the Jeffrey Epstein investigation and disputes over his commitment to the America First movement. Graham’s longstanding hawkish stance on Iran – a position that has seen him call for U.S. military intervention in the country for years – also made him a target of anti-interventionist America First critics, as tensions between the U.S. and Iran remain heightened. Still, Graham held onto his nomination, extending his decades-long career in Washington.
In Nevada, Republicans are locked in a competitive primary race for an open congressional seat that has not been vacant in 15 years, following the retirement of the district’s long-serving incumbent. The contest has come down to two candidates: a political novice endorsed by Trump, and former state senator James Settelmeyer, with both candidates spending months competing to prove their unwavering loyalty to Trump’s policy agenda. Primary contests also concluded in North Dakota, where voters finalized their respective party nominees for November’s general election. Across all four states, the outcomes have set the stage for a fiercely contested midterm cycle, with control of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives hanging in the balance, and the balance of power during Trump’s remaining term in office on the line for voters.