The campaign manager for Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner confirmed to The Hill on Monday that he is leaving his position.
Development comes in the form of Plattner faces backlash over a series of controversies It came to light last week, but campaign manager Kevin Brown said in a statement that his decision was due to the expectation of a child.
Brown said, “Graham is a dear friend. I started this campaign on a Tuesday but found out on Friday that we were having a baby.” “Graham deserves someone who is 100% in his running and we want to be involved in this new experience as a family so it would be better if we step back as soon as possible so Graham can get the manager he deserves.”
Axios was the first outlet to report on Brown’s exit from the campaign.
The Democratic candidate has been on the defensive over several scandals, including the revelation that he had a tattoo of a Nazi symbol on his chest, which he later covered up, as well as several controversial statements he has made in the past on Reddit. He has addressed the controversies and apologized.
Plattner is seen as a favorite of progressive populists, particularly Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), as Democrats prepare to take on outgoing Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) in the general election next year. The party’s establishment has fallen behind Gov. Janet Mills (D) in the primary.
It is unclear what kind of impact the scandal will have on his support in the primary.
A University of New Hampshire Survey Center poll conducted ahead of the results found Plattner leading Mills among Maine Democratic primary voters with 58 percent support to 24 percent. Another 14 percent said they were undecided, and 2 percent said they would support other candidates.
However, a SoCal Strategies poll released after the controversy surfaced showed Mills leading Plattner by 41 percent to 36 percent.
