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Graham Platner | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1984or1985(age 40–41) Sullivan, Maine, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | George Washington University (attended) |
| Website | grahamforsenate |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | |
| Battles/wars | |
Graham Platner (born 1984or1985) [1] is an American oyster farmer, harbormaster, and military veteran who is running in the Democratic primary in the 2026 United States Senate election in Maine, seeking to unseat Republican Susan Collins. [2] [3] His campaign has received significant attention, in large part owing to a series of viral videos that sparked national media attention. [4] [5] [6]
Platner was born in Sullivan, a coastal town in rural Maine near Acadia National Park. [1] [3] While attending high school at John Bapst Memorial High School in Bangor, Platner earned the "most likely to start a revolution" yearbook superlative in 2003. He was pictured holding a sign reading "Free Kosovo, Chechnya, Kashmir, Palestine, Kurdistan, Tibet". When he was 18, he was quoted in the Bangor Daily News after protesting President George W. Bush and the Iraq War at an appearance by Bush at Bangor International Airport. [7]
Platner enlisted in the Marine Corps shortly after graduating from high school, and served three tours in Iraq, in areas including Ramadi and Fallujah. Asked why he served in the Iraq War after protesting it, Platner said, "I thought I could do some good. And I wanted to play soldier. I might have read too much Hemingway." [8]
Platner then enrolled at George Washington University on a G.I. Bill scholarship. While at GWU, he worked as a bartender at the Tune Inn on Capitol Hill. [9] [10] Shortly after beginning school, he enlisted in the Maryland Army National Guard and served an additional tour of duty in the war in Afghanistan. [2] [11] He returned to GWU in 2011, but withdrew and returned to Maine, where he received physical and mental therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder and physical difficulties from his time in the military. [11] [12] [8]
In 2018, Platner briefly returned to Afghanistan as a security contractor for the State Department. He says he quickly grew more disillusioned with the military and what he called fraudulent funneling of taxpayer money to private defense companies, and so returned to Maine the same year. [2] [12]
Platner began working at Waukeag Neck Oyster Co., a small oyster farm in Frenchman Bay that supplies restaurants in Downeast Maine. [2] [13] He took over the company in 2020, and now owns and operates it with his wife, Amy. [8] [14] He says the business does not make much money, but he is able to supplement his income with benefits he earns as a 100% disabled veteran. [8] [9] Platner is also Sullivan's harbormaster, and runs a mooring and dive service. [3] [15] He is the chair of Sullivan's planning board. [16]
Platner launched his Senate campaign on August 19, 2025, in a video produced by Morris Katz, a senior advisor to New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. [4] [14] In the video, Platner highlights his military and working-class credentials, while criticizing his prospective opponent in harsh terms: [17]
I did four infantry tours in the Marine Corps and the Army. 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.
This video received 2.5 million views in its first 24 hours, sparking national media attention. [5] [18] The campaign raised $1 million in its first nine days, and reported amassing over 2,700 volunteers. [19] Similarities in style and viral following have led to comparisons between Platner and Mamdani, with some commentators calling Platner "Maine's Mamdani". [20] [21]
Senator Bernie Sanders endorsed Platner on August 30, ahead of a Fighting Oligarchy Tour appearance in Portland with Platner and Maine gubernatorial candidate Troy Jackson. [22] [23] The event had originally been scheduled to be held in an auditorium but had to be moved to a much larger arena due to high public interest. [24] [25]
Platner has been characterized as a populist and a progressive. [2] [14] [17] He has received attention for focusing on economic issues facing working-class Americans, and for being willing to criticize the Democratic Party establishment, [6] citing Senator Bernie Sanders as his political influence. [10] His platform includes focusing on housing affordability, universal healthcare, and ending U.S. involvement in overseas wars. [10] [22] He has referred to the "genocide happening in Palestine" as "the ultimate moral test of our time". [12] [20] [26]
Platner has explicitly declined to be identified as progressive or liberal, saying, "I think it's silly that thinking people deserve health care, that makes you some kind of lefty. But I do think those working-class policies are necessary." [10] [4] He has highlighted his support for gun rights as a point where he differs from mainstream liberals, [14] and said that many of his friends and colleagues voted for Donald Trump. [4] He has strongly criticized the Democratic Party establishment for not doing enough to counter Trump administration policies such as mass deportation and support for Israel's war in Gaza. [2]
In The American Prospect , August Ahlman called Platner part of "a growing wave of populist Senate candidates who are challenging modern understandings of political labels by forefronting anti-establishment, anti-corporate, and distinctly localist politics and policies." [18]
At a Labor Day rally headlined by Senator Bernie Sanders, Platner voiced his view that "We do not live in a system that is broken — we live in a system that is functioning exactly as it’s intended. We live in a system that has been built by the political class to enrich and support billionaires on the backs of working people." [27]
Platner credits his military experience with forming his populist politics. [2] He has called U.S. "military adventurism" "a mechanism of moving taxpayer dollars into the private bank accounts of defense companies, all on the backs of frankly working-class men and women, and on the backs of the people living in societies that we took the wars to." [2] Platner has also credited his veterans' healthcare and disability benefits with enabling him to run his small business, and argues that all Americans should have access to increased social welfare regardless of military service. [23]
Platner lives in Sullivan, Maine, with his wife, Amy Gertner. [15] He is a competitive pistol shooter and firearms instructor. [14]
