Platner says ‘Maine has my back’ as Collins calls latest allegations ‘troubling’

Progressive oyster farmer Graham Platner is remaining defiant in the face of mounting scrutiny over his past, as Maine voters prepare to cast ballots in the upcoming Senate primaries and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) labels the latest allegations against her presumptive Democratic rival “troubling.” Platner returned to the campaign trail on Friday, a day after shocking details regarding his past alleged behavior toward women surfaced in New York Times interviews with three of his former girlfriends. “Since the beginning, Maine, you had my back,” Platner told a crowd of supporters who greeted him warmly, according to NBC News. “When hurtful things I said on the Internet a decade ago came out into the public as I shared by personal journey through PTSD and darkness of recovery and accountability and growth — Maine had my back.” He reportedly added that the state has continued to stand behind him as “every single piece of that past and journey gets dug up, litigated, and weaponized,” an apparent reference to the most recent allegations. While some former romantic partners portrayed Platner to the New York Times as a caring boyfriend, others described his past behavior as “toxic” and “unsettling.” Lyndsey Fifield, a Virginia conservative who reported dating Platner from 2013 to 2015, told the newspaper that he could be physically rough with her at times. …