Sanders says he does not regret supporting Graham Platner in Maine Senate race

Campaign Sanders says he does not regret supporting Graham Platner in Maine Senate race Comments: by Ryan Mancini - 07/26/26 12:38 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Ryan Mancini - 07/26/26 12:38 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Sunday said he did not regret supporting former Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner (D) after a former girlfriend’s accusations of sexual assault came to light and led the progressive candidate to drop his bid.

CBS News’s Margaret Brennan asked Sanders about his support for Platner on Sunday’s “Face the Nation,” asking if he regretted his support and if acting sooner would “have given you a leg up” with Platner’s eventual replacement as Maine’s Democratic nominee, Troy Jackson.

“No, I don’t think so,” Sanders said. “When we heard the serious allegations made against him, I wanted to get on the phone, I wanted to talk to him. I did. I asked, along with virtually all his supporters, that he should get out of the race, and he did.”

Brennan pressed Sanders on whether the candidates he is backing in the midterm elections have been vetted. Sanders initially said he did not know “who has to be ‘fully vetted.'”

“Well, all I know is, Margaret, the candidates that we are supporting are standing up for the working class of this country,” he said. “I think the candidates that I and other progressives are supporting are generating enormous grassroots excitement and enthusiasm.”

Sanders defended his support for Jackson, Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed (D) and Minnesota Senate candidate Peggy Flanagan (D) against accusations that it could help further drive a wedge between progressive and more establishment Democrats.

“People are sick and tired of the … Democratic establishment and the Republican establishment,” he continued.

Sanders had been a staunch supporter of Platner’s as he faced scandal after scandal. The oyster farmer was criticized for inflammatory comments he posted years ago on Reddit, saying they were a result of unresolved traumas experienced while deployed overseas. He also covered up a tattoo on his chest after acknowledging his dislike of it resembling a Nazi symbol.

Reports also revealed sexually explicit messages Platner shared with women he knew. Platner said he and his wife dealt with the messages early in their marriage, telling MS NOW that the messages ended after they got married.

Platner dropped out of the race earlier this month after Politico reported former girlfriend Jenny Racicot’s accusation that the candidate sexually assaulted her in 2021. Platner sharply denied the claims and at first said his campaign would take “the time to reflect on the best path forward” in the high-stakes race before formally withdrawing.

Some Democrats fumed over the support Platner had even as each scandal emerged. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), who Sanders campaigned for and supported in 2022, said Sanders should apologize for “pushing this kind of predator more than anyone he helped.”

“Maybe he should consider sit a few out and stop pushing these kinds of communists and people,” Fetterman said of Sanders during an interview on Fox News.

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