A former girlfriend of Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner who had previously accused him of violence told CNN she was heartened that he was facing broad calls to drop out of the race after another woman accused him of rape.
Lyndsey Fifield described her own alleged mistreatment by Platner for the first time on camera to CNN on Tuesday, saying that he repeatedly grabbed her, at times leaving bruises, and once blocked her inside a bedroom while they were dating more than a decade ago.
Her interview came a day after Jenny Racicot, who casually dated Platner for two years, accused him of coming into her home without permission and raping her while he was heavily intoxicated. Her account in interviews with Politico and CNN, which Platner denied, led to a chorus of Democratic officials calling on Platner to end his campaign.
Fifield said she was inspired by Racicot’s bravery coming forward and felt “relief” that endorsers like Sen. Bernie Sanders urged Platner to drop out of the race. At the same time, she said, she was disturbed that her own allegations about Platner’s behavior, which were published by the New York Times last month, didn’t spark similar condemnation from Platner’s supporters.
