{"id":2610848,"date":"2026-06-04T20:06:39","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T00:06:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/golden-rules-out-replacing-platner-on-ballot-amid-scandals\/"},"modified":"2026-06-04T20:07:54","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T00:07:54","slug":"golden-rules-out-replacing-platner-on-ballot-amid-scandals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/golden-rules-out-replacing-platner-on-ballot-amid-scandals\/","title":{"rendered":"Golden rules out replacing Platner on ballot amid scandals"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgolden-rules-out-replacing-platner-on-ballot-amid-scandals%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2610848&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) says there is no truth to rumors that he might run for the U.S. Senate in 2026 if Democratic nominee Graham platner steps aside. golden told the *Washington Examiner* he is \u201cnot\u201d a candidate for the Senate race and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trumps-lawyers-say-impeachment-is-constitutionally-flawed-selfish-ploy-by-democrats\/\" title=\"Trump\u2019s Lawyers Say Impeachment Is Constitutionally Flawed, \u2018Selfish\u2019 Ploy by ...\">dismissed claims<\/a> that party leaders would handpick and replace a nominee after the primary.He also said no Senate Democratic leadership has contacted him about the matter, attributing the chatter to social media.<\/p>\n<p>The rumors come as Platner faces fresh allegations-including claims of intimidating or aggressive behavior toward women, along with a controversial tattoo linked by critics to Nazi imagery.Although Platner is expected to win the Democratic primary against the backdrop of these issues,the article notes the Maine Democratic Party could replace him if he withdraws by July 13 under state rules.Democrats are aiming to defeat Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), a key contest for their chances of retaking the majority.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rep. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/jared-golden\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"7050\">Jared Golden<\/a> (D-ME) shut down any rumors that he\u2019s interested in running for <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/senate\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"8765\">Senate<\/a> as Democratic front-runner <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/graham-platner\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"22643\">Graham Platner<\/a> faces yet another controversy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m not going to be a candidate for the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/united-states\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"671\">United States <\/a>Senate in 2026,\u201d Golden told the <em>Washington Examiner.<\/em> \u201cI can assure you of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4596015\/graham-platner-allegations-treatment-women\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Graham Platner hit by fresh wave of allegations about treatment of women and Nazi tattoo<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4595770\/democrats-bracing-bombshells-graham-platner-byron-york\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Democrats bracing for more bombshells in Platner sexting scandal: Byron York<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4595120\/chuy-garcia-successor-independent-challenger\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Chuy Garcia\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/graham-platner-hit-by-fresh-wave-of-allegations-ahead-of-maine-primary\/\" title=\"... by ... of ... ahead of Maine ...\">successor faces independent challengers<\/a> after nomination scheme<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/06\/04\/us\/politics\/platner-maine-senate-girlfriends-relationships.html\"><em>New York Times<\/em><\/a>  article published Thursday detailed new allegations against Platner in which multiple women called his actions intimidating, disturbing, and sometimes aggressive. His campaign disputed many of the allegations. <\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Platner has also been plagued for the majority of his campaign by a controversial tattoo that he claimed he did not know resembled the Nazi Totenkopf symbol.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Platner, an oyster farmer in Maine, was not the party establishment\u2019s preferred candidate, but a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >significant fundraising advantage<\/a> and strong local support forced Gov. Janet Mills (D-ME) out of the race, making Platner the presumptive nominee to take on Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) ahead of Tuesday\u2019s primary.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mills recently flirted with the idea she could resume her campaign, as her name will appear on Tuesday\u2019s ballot, but she has so far not taken any meaningful steps to resurrect her Senate bid.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But even as Platner remains the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/washington-post-top-10-for-24-dem-candidates-includes-aoc-warren-somebody-named-roy-asberry-cooper-iii\/\" title=\"Washington Post Top 10 For \u201924 Dem ...s Includes AOC, Warren, Somebody Named Roy Asberry Cooper III\">clear front-runner<\/a>, the Washington rumor mill has run rampant on who could replace Platner if he were to step aside. Among those floated has been Golden, a House Democrat retiring at the end of this term. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When asked if he would ever be interested in a Senate run, Golden gave an unequivocal \u201cit\u2019s a no, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Golden also condemned the idea that the Democratic Party would handpick a candidate if Platner secured the nomination and then dropped out. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI think that, in general, Maine voters are smart, and they got to make their own choices, and once they\u2019ve made their choice, it\u2019s never good luck to take a nominee and replace him with someone else,\u201d Golden said. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While Platner is expected to overwhelmingly win the Democratic primary, Democrats could, in theory, replace him after the primary. Under state law, Platner can withdraw his bid by July 13, and the Maine Democratic Party would nominate his replacement.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Golden told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> that no members of Senate party leadership had reached out to him to inquire about his interest, chalking the chatter up to social media. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4596015\/graham-platner-allegations-treatment-women\/\"><strong>GRAHAM PLATNER HIT BY FRESH WAVE OF ALLEGATIONS ABOUT TREATMENT OF WOMEN AND NAZI TATTOO<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI think I must be like the only person in the world who\u2019s too busy to be talking about\u00a0Graham Platner today,\u201d Golden said. \u201cI\u2019m actually going to fight off a proposal to send the building of our warfighter ships to foreign yards. I don\u2019t have time to talk about Graham Platner today. I don\u2019t spend too much time thinking about him either.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maine is one of the most competitive Senate seats in the country, and defeating Collins is critical for any path for Democrats to retake the majority. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rep. Jared Golden denies 2026 Senate run amid Graham Platner controversies<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4027,"featured_media":2610849,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-collage-e3vzea6z5-1780612795690-e1780615668455.jpg?1780598444&amp;w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[7386,3728,5894,47267,4633],"class_list":["post-2610848","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-ballot","tag-election","tag-politics","tag-public-trust","tag-scandal"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-collage-e3vzea6z5-1780612795690-e1780615668455.jpg?1780598444&amp;w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2610848","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4027"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2610848"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2610848\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2610852,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2610848\/revisions\/2610852"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2610849"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2610848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2610848"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2610848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}