Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner has lost another top campaign official after a series of controversies centering around old social media comments and an alleged Nazi-linked tattoo derailed his campaign’s momentum.
Ronald Holmes, Platner’s national finance director, resigned from his position on the campaign “effective immediately” on Friday in an announcement posted to LinkedIn.
“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,” Holmes said.
But he wrote that “somewhere along the way,” he began to feel his “professional standards” no longer “fully aligned” with those of Platner’s campaign.
“I’m proud of the people who showed up with good hearts and clear purpose and the lessons that came with the work,” he wrote. He ended his resignation announcement wishing the campaign and Maine voters well in “selecting a nominee who they believe is best suited to meet the moment.”
Holmes’ resignation marks the third exit from Platner’s organizing team. Former campaign manager Kevin Brown left his post Monday, saying his decision was due to expecting a baby. His former political director, Genevieve McDonald, left her position due to Platner’s previous posts on social media.
Platner previously maintained an account on the social media platform Reddit. Under the account — which was deleted before his campaign’s launch — he made several yearsold comments that were dismissive of sexual assault. He also asked why “Black people don’t tip” and made comments implying support for political violence.
The Maine candidate disavowed his past comments, saying he didn’t think “any of that is indicative of who I am today.”
One of his tattoos added to the controversy for its alleged resemblance to a Nazi symbol. Platner covered the tattoo last week, saying he had no idea about the tattoo’s connotations before others had informed him about it. But further uncovered old posts from Platner called his claim into question.
Platner accused the Democratic Party of trying to “destroy my life” during a Maine town hall earlier this week. Reports of his social media posts and tattoo first surfaced following Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) entering the Senate race in mid-October.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has backed Mills while Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has maintained support for Platner despite the controversies that have dogged the campaign in the past few weeks. Both hope their pick will unseat Republican Sen. Susan Collins and help flip the Senate majority to their party.
