Maine Senate Democratic candidate Graham Platner is pushing back against recent reports about his personal life, calling the coverage by major national outlets “journalistic malpractice.” In an interview with WMTV, Platner addressed allegations that he had sent inappropriate messages to multiple women. The claims came from stories published by The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.
According to Mediaite, The Wall Street Journal’s reporting relied on anonymous sources, stating that Platner’s wife, Amy Gertner, disclosed the existence of these messages to a campaign aide in late August 2025.
According to the report, Gertner shared this information to make sure the campaign was aware of any potential risks to his political run. The New York Times cited Genevieve McDonald, a former state legislator who previously served as political director for the Platner campaign, to support the claims.
Platner specifically denied the claims made by Genevieve McDonald
During his interview with the local ABC affiliate, Platner called the media attention a distraction from his campaign’s core issues. “It’s no surprise to me that the establishment media outlets are just gonna run gossip instead of wanting to talk about the things that actually matter in this race, which are the material realities that the Mainers are working with,” he told the interviewer.
Platner also criticized what he described as an attempt by the media to interfere in his marriage. “These people are gonna try to make this race about anything but what it’s supposed to be about, which is policy. They never want to talk about policy,” he said. “Amy and I have a very loving and very happy marriage. They would very much like to try to rip that apart.”
When the reporter pressed him on whether the reported messages actually existed, Platner argued that the outlets based their stories on gossip from a former staffer, even after his team tried to push back before publication.
“I’m sorry that’s, frankly, journalistic malpractice. We pushed back on it, they won it, they did it anyways,” he said. When asked directly whether he was confirming that no such messages existed. “I’m confirming that what Genevieve McDonald said in The New York Times is not true,” he replied.
When questioned about whether he had met with staff to discuss uncomfortable messages during the campaign, he acknowledged that he and his wife had discussed their personal history with the team, but insisted that the specific account given by McDonald was inaccurate.
Platner is already facing scrutiny on several other fronts. His tattoo linked to Nazi-coded imagery previously drew criticism, with House Democrats divided over whether it should disqualify him from the race. He has also faced backlash over past Reddit posts described as misogynistic and racist, and has been linked to a Kik account that featured a topless photo of him wearing a towel.
Published: Jun 2, 2026 06:23 am