{"id":2632852,"date":"2026-07-20T18:57:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T22:57:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/democrats-make-graham-platner-replacement-all-but-official-not-everyone-is-pleased\/"},"modified":"2026-07-20T19:01:58","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T23:01:58","slug":"democrats-make-graham-platner-replacement-all-but-official-not-everyone-is-pleased","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/democrats-make-graham-platner-replacement-all-but-official-not-everyone-is-pleased\/","title":{"rendered":"Democrats Make Graham Platner Replacement All But Official &#8211; Not Everyone Is Pleased"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/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%2Fdemocrats-make-graham-platner-replacement-all-but-official-not-everyone-is-pleased%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=2632852&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>The provided content appears to be a webpage excerpt containing a &#8220;Read more&#8221; button that, when clicked, reveals additional details. The extended text includes a discussion about political developments in Maine, highlighting the support for Troy Jackson as a progressive candidate and the challenges faced by other Democratic candidates. It also references criticisms regarding the candidate selection process, perceived favoritism, and recent political controversies, such as a sexual assault allegation against Graham Platner. Comparisons are drawn to the broader Democratic presidential primary process, mentioning concerns over candidate performance, perceived manipulation, and leadership decisions. The article emphasizes themes of political authenticity, voter dissatisfaction, and the impact of candidate attributes on electoral prospects, touching on wider issues within party politics and campaign dynamics.  <\/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\"><br \/>\n<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>History never actually repeats itself, though it sure seems that way sometimes.<\/p>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2026\/07\/20\/troy-jackson-cruised-to-victory-in-maine-but-graham-platner-still-looms-large-with-voters-01004705\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Politico<\/a>, Maine Democrats gave off 2024 vibes when they gathered at county delegate conventions and threw their support behind former state Senate Majority Leader Troy Jackson, a progressive and fifth-generation logger who now appears poised to replace the party\u2019s scandal-plagued U.S. Senate nominee, Graham Platner.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, some voters found both the new candidate and the process wanting.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe was never going to be like the pick of the consultant class,\u201d 45-year-old Jackson supporter Josh Brockman said.<\/p>\n<p>Brockman, in fact, characterized his preferred candidate as \u201ctoo much of a regular guy\u201d and \u201cnot the slick choice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, even Jackson supporters recognized their candidate as charisma-deficient.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, during Jackson\u2019s recent bid for the Maine governorship, a contest in which he placed third among Democrats, middle school teacher James Gale compared Jackson unfavorably to the dynamic <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/first-debate-replace-platner-reveals-just-much-trouble-maine-dems\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Platner<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought, geez, I know that he\u2019s a very popular progressive candidate. I really need him to step up his game,\u201d Gale said of Jackson. \u201cHe was campaigning alongside Graham Platner, and I think Graham Platner was the one drawing the audiences.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Likewise, healthcare worker Lindsey Harwath expressed dissatisfaction with the process.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe were not under the impression that people were going to be already coming into this process predetermined,\u201d Harwath said of the Jackson-dominated county delegate conventions. \u201cThat seems very undemocratic. That seems like rigging a process before you\u2019ve done it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/declassified-bombshell-reveals-just-far-china-went-help-biden-2020\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Rigged<\/a> or otherwise, the weekend\u2019s results drove out Jackson\u2019s primary competition.<\/p>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcboston.com\/news\/local\/maine-senate-race-shenna-bellows-nirav-shah-dan-kleban-drop-out-troy-jackson-democratic-support\/3983859\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WBTS<\/a> in Boston, Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, former Maine public health official Nirav Shah, and Maine Beer Company owner Dan Kleban all withdrew from the race.<\/p>\n<p>Former congressional staffer Jordan Wood, however, did not withdraw his Senate candidacy. In fact, Wood cited Jackson\u2019s endorsement of Platner as a problem for Democrats.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think that Troy can beat [Republican Sen.] Susan Collins. I think it\u2019s going to be difficult, though, because he helped introduce us to Graham and got a lot of \u2014 conveyed a lot of trust and authority onto him,\u201d Wood said.<\/p>\n<p>Platner <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/graham-platner-drops-maine-senate-race\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ended<\/a> his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/platner-officially-goes-expect-free-palestine-vulgar-message-ice-no-accountability-seriousness\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">controversial campaign<\/a> earlier this month after a woman he once dated <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/breaking-bombshell-sex-allegation-hits-platner-entered-womans-home-uninvited-forced\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">accused him<\/a> of sexual assault. He has denied the allegation.<\/p>\n<p>The entire situation calls to mind the 2024 presidential campaign, which Democrats would <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/embarrassing-democrats-turn-kamala-harris-unhelpful-divisive-new-book\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">rather forget<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>After a troubling debate performance that exposed his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/watch-bidens-brain-collapses-debate-trump-sounds-lost-38-second-nightmare\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">cognitive decline<\/a>, then-President Joe Biden found himself pushed aside by party leaders in what amounted to a \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/leftists-melt-new-york-times-columnist-tells-truth-democrats-coup\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">coup<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Having dispensed with a political liability in Biden, Democrats skipped a primary and rushed to nominate then-Vice President Kamala Harris. The choice of the word salad-prone <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/top-obama-advisor-david-axelrod-sounds-alarm-kamala-harriss-town-hall-performance-word-salad-city\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Harris<\/a> did not exactly energize the party.<\/p>\n<p>Jackson also could remind voters of Democrats\u2019 uneasy relationship with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/dems-despise-normal-masculine-men-elevate-people-like-tim-walz-graham-platner\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">masculinity<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In 2024, Harris chose Democratic Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota as her running mate in part because Democrats erroneously believed that Walz\u2019s peculiar <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/espn-host-lauds-tim-walzs-different-kind-masculinity-promptly-gets-ripped-respected-reporter\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">brand of masculinity<\/a> would appeal to male voters.<\/p>\n<p>The people of Maine will decide in November whether a \u201cprogressive\u201d logger sounds too much like Walz 2.0.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f7f7f7; color: #171717; display: flex;font-size: 16px;font-weight: 600;line-height: 1.5;margin: 24px 0;padding: 18px 20px 18px 30px;text-align: left;\">\n<div style=\"align-self: stretch;border-left: 3px solid #171717;flex-shrink: 0;padding-left: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<p><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/\">Choose The Western Journal as your preferred source on Google and never miss reporting that defends truth, protects freedom, and advances Western civilization<\/a><\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey == typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts = { \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs = [ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i = 0; i < inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]] = document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display = 'block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display = 'none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src = firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display = 'inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id'] = firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting = jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display = 'none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display = 'block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/body><\/html><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>History rarely repeats exactly, but it often feels that way. As reported by Politico, Maine Democrats showed strong 2024 signals during county delegate conventions by backing Troy Jackson, a progressive and fifth-generation logger who is likely to succeed the party\u2019s troubled U.S. Senate candidate<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2632853,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-07-20T170024.491.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[3685,65649,43229,82950,32838],"class_list":["post-2632852","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-democrats","tag-graham-platner","tag-leadership-change","tag-partisan-reactions","tag-political-battle"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-07-20T170024.491.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2632852","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\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2632852"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2632852\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2632855,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2632852\/revisions\/2632855"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2632853"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2632852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2632852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2632852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}