Exit, stage left: Democrat’s campaign staff can’t stop running for the hills
Democrat Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner’s national finance director announced his resignation on Friday, marking the latest departure in an exodus of personnel from a campaign dogged by controversy at every turn.
Ronald Holmes, who started working for Platner’s campaign in August, announced his immediate exit in a LinkedIn post, saying he is “no longer fully aligned” with the campaign’s standards. The exit comes just days after Platner’s campaign manager, Kevin Brown stepped down after less than a week on the job, and two weeks since the campaign’s political director, Genevieve McDonald, left.
“I joined this campaign because I believed in building something different – a campaign of fresh energy, integrity, and reform-minded thinking in a political system that often resists exactly those things. Somewhere along the way, I began to feel that my professional standards as a campaign professional no longer fully aligned with those of the campaign,” Holmes wrote. “I wish the campaign and the voters in Maine well as they continue forward with selecting a nominee who they believe is best suited to meet the moment and flip this critical must win seat for us to take back the U.S. Senate in 2026.”
Holmes previously worked as the deputy campaign manager and finance director for Democratic New York Rep. Josh Riley‘s successful 2024 campaign as well as the national finance director for 2026 Michigan Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris Swanson, according to his LinkedIn page.
A spokesperson for Platner’s campaign told Politico the team will continue to focus on fundraising efforts. The campaign did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
“Ron helped the campaign reach out to big dollar donors, and we appreciated his efforts. But the reality is our campaign’s fundraising success has come largely from small dollar donors,” the spokesperson said. “Nearly 90 percent of what we’ve raised has come from small dollar donations and online donors which has been and [continues] to be run by our digital fundraising director.”
Platner’s campaign saw over $3.2 million in donations within its first six weeks, likely boosted by his high-profile endorsement from Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in August. However, the left-wing candidate’s hot streak came to a halt in October when old Reddit posts made by the oyster farmer and Marine veteran were unearthed.
Platner, in his posts, appeared to downplay sexual assault in the military, self-identified as a communist, encouraged political violence as a tool for social change and made offensive comments toward black people. McDonald had resigned from the campaign claiming she could not look past the Senate candidate’s past comments. Platner apologized for the posts, claiming he wrote them at a time when he was “struggling deeply.”
The candidate’s controversies continued when an old video of Platner surfaced, revealing a chest tattoo that appeared to be connected to Nazi symbolism. Platner has denied the tattoo was related to Nazism and has since covered it with a new design, according to the Associated Press.
Sanders continued to stand by Platner throughout the chaos, telling reporters Tuesday that he still sees the oyster farmer as “an excellent candidate” and is looking forward to him “becoming the next senator from Maine.”
Platner is running in Maine’s Democratic Senate primary against term-limited Democratic Maine Gov. Janet Mills, the party establishment favorite. The winner of the Democratic primary will likely face incumbent Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins, who has held the seat since 1997. Collins is the only Republican senator to currently represent a state former Vice President Kamala Harris carried in 2024.
Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.