Maine Senate Candidate Denies Rape Allegation Made by Former Girlfriend

Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner was accused of rape by former girlfriend Jenny Racicot over an encounter she said occurred in 2021. Racicot told Politico and CNN that Platner entered her home after she told him not to come over, ignored her repeated refusals, and had non-consensual sex with her.

She said the two met on Bumble in 2019 and had an on-again, off-again relationship until the alleged incident.

Racicot described Platner as "very drunk and wouldn't take no for an answer" and said she felt complying was the safest option at the time. " He said his campaign was reflecting on the best path forward. Senate Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries joined New York Sens.

Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand in urging an immediate withdrawal. Rep. Ro Khanna and Sen. Ruben Gallego also called on Platner to drop out. He faces a July 13 deadline to withdraw for Democrats to replace him before the November election.

Racicot said she later messaged Platner on Instagram stating the encounter was not consensual, though she could not recover those messages. She did not file a police report. Under Maine law the statute of limitations for rape is 20 years.

She provided emails with a therapist and statements from a subsequent partner that corroborated her account to Politico. Racicot said she had previously kept silent because of conflicting feelings about Platner's politics. "I just want the truth out there.

I just want people to have a whole scope of who he is as a person," Racicot said.