Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner’s campaign is reeling from a string of high-profile departures, the latest blow to a candidacy already struggling to contain controversies over past remarks, social media posts, and a tattoo linked to Nazi imagery.
Ronald Holmes III, the campaign’s national finance director, became the latest senior staffer to resign Friday, publicly announcing his decision on LinkedIn. “I resigned from that role effective immediately,” Holmes wrote, citing a growing sense that his “professional standards as a campaign professional no longer fully aligned with those of the campaign.”
“I wish the campaign and the voters in Maine well as they continue forward with selecting a nominee who they believe is best suited to meet the moment and flip this critical must-win seat for us to take back the U.S. Senate in 2026,” Holmes added.
In a statement to Axios, the Platner campaign downplayed the departure, insisting that Holmes’ role had focused primarily on major donors while the campaign’s fundraising base was overwhelmingly grassroots. “The reality is our campaign’s fundraising success has come largely from small dollar donors,” the statement said. “Nearly 90% of what we’ve raised has come from small dollar donations and online donors, which is run by our digital fundraising director.”
Holmes’ exit follows a series of resignations that have left Platner’s campaign in disarray. Earlier this week, campaign manager Kevin Brown abruptly left the team, citing personal reasons. Brown, who described Platner as a “dear friend,” said he learned he has a child on the way, according to Maine’s WGME News.
But the most damaging departure came when political director Genevieve McDonald resigned following the resurfacing of a series of online posts from Platner’s Reddit account, including one in which he described himself as a “communist” and another declaring “cops are bastards.”
The controversy deepened when it was revealed that Platner once had a Totenkopf tattoo—a skull emblem used by the Nazi SS. Though Platner has since covered the tattoo, McDonald condemned it publicly on Facebook. “Graham has an antisemitic tattoo on his chest,” she wrote. “He’s not an idiot, he’s a military history buff. Maybe he didn’t know it when he got it, but he got it years ago and he should have had it covered up because he knows damn well what it means.”
Platner has dismissed the accusations as politically motivated attacks. On October 25, he posted on X that “voters have seen the DC smear campaign,” insisting that it “isn’t working,” and pointing to an internal poll showing him ahead of Governor Janet Mills, his chief rival for the Democratic nomination.
“I am not a secret Nazi,” Platner said earlier this month on Pod Save America. “Actually, if you read through my Reddit comments I think you can pretty much figure out where I stand on Nazism and antisemitism and racism in general. I would say, lifelong opponent.”
Whoever emerges from the Democratic primary will face Republican Senator Susan Collins in what is shaping up to be one of the most closely watched Senate contests of the 2026 cycle. For now, Platner’s campaign faces a steeper challenge: convincing Maine voters—and his own party—that it is still viable.
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