Overview
- Platner’s team told donors it is reallocating effort to the November race after recent surveys, including one it paid for, showed him far ahead of Gov. Janet Mills by margins reported at 27 to 38 points.
- Mills’ campaign pushed back, arguing Democrats should decide the nominee and warning Republicans want to face Platner, as the party watches a high-profile fight to challenge Sen. Susan Collins.
- A local dust-up over a Sagadahoc County debate escalated when the moderator said Mills had “pulled out,” but county Democrats later apologized and said she had not confirmed and had a prior commitment.
- Both campaigns said they will participate in a televised debate and two Maine Democratic Party forums, offering voters multiple chances to compare the field before the June primary.
- Mills, a two-term governor backed by Senate leader Chuck Schumer, has hit Platner over decade-old social media comments about rape, while Platner, a 41-year-old oyster farmer backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, has paused some response ads and started running spots against Collins.