Democratic candidate Graham Platner coasted to an easy nomination for the U.S. Senate race in Maine on Tuesday night, overcoming weeks of negative press over scandals about his personal life and interactions with women to take on longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins, a top target of Democrats hoping to flip control of the upper chamber.
While Republicans project confidence in the race publicly, a recent memo from the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) is throwing up alarms, warning this could be a tough fight and Collins must not be caught off guard.
The memo was posted to X on Wednesday morning by Fox News' Alexis McAdams.
"Maine has become more than a battleground state in this year's fight for control of the Senate. It has become a linchpin," stated the NRSC memo. "Because Democrats cannot win the majority without it, they have fully rallied around Graham Platner, an extremely flawed, far-left candidate who secured the nomination last night. Platner has captured his party's financial backing, outraising Senator Collins in every quarter since entering the race. We must match both the energy and the money to retain the seat."
The memo outlined the fact that one of Platner's best fundraising days was after the story dropped about his problematic relationships with women.
Ultimately, the memo concluded, in a state as Democratic-leaning as Maine, "it is a fatal mistake to assume Platner is too damaged to win. He is currently leading. Vice President Harris won the state by 7 points, and the National Democrats view this as their only path to regaining control." Collins, the memo said, has to be protected "with total urgency."
