Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner dropped out of the 2026 race on Wednesday after multiple sexual assault allegations surfaced.“This is incredibly difficult, because I know that some will think it’s an admission of guilt, and it most certainly is not. We’re not doing it because of the allegations, we’re doing it because of the structures that are being taken away from us by those in power,” he said in an 11-minute video Wednesday evening.“We did it the right way. We built a campaign, we engaged in electoral politics, we motivated people, we banded together. We did it the way that we were told we are supposed to make change, and we won. And now they are not going to let us have it ― not if it’s me,” Platner added.The deadline to withdraw was July 13. Democrats now have until July 27 to replace Platner with a new candidate, The New York Times reported. The Maine Democratic Party said it would select a replacement through a nominating convention.Platner’s decision to withdraw from the race comes after a campaign riddled with controversy. A bombshell report in Politico on Monday claimed he sexually assaulted a woman he used to date off and on for a couple of years. The following day, The Washington Post also published a shocking report, in which an ex-girlfriend of Platner also accused him of sexual assault.Maine resident Jenny Racicot, 41, accused Platner of entering her home uninvited while intoxicated in 2021.“I remember him grabbing my pelvis and being really forceful of me,” Racicot told Politico. “I remember the specific moment where I thought to myself, ‘This is no longer my choice.’”Soon after the Politico story was published, Platner denied the allegations and said he and his team would weigh their next options.“Any accusation of non-consensual behavior is categorically false,” he said in a video posted to social media.“Regardless of the inaccuracy of the reporting, we’re mindful the political reality will inflict,” Platner added. “We are taking the time to reflect on the best path forward for the state that I love, the people that I love, the movement I belong to, and the goal of defeating Susan Collins.”Lyndsey Fifield, 41, who dated Platner from 2013 to 2015, said that Platner removed condoms during sex, an act known as “stealthing,” without her consent at least six times.“I confronted him both during and after [sex] because he knew that I was not on birth control and how dangerous that was,” Fifield told The Washington Post.“He would act like cute about it, like, ‘Oh, sneaky me,’” she said.Platner denied the stealthing allegation to The Post. Fifield was one of several women who used to date him that was featured in a New York Times report last month. The women accused Platner of exhibiting alarming behavior in several instances.In that report, Fifield accused him of being physically rough with her on multiple occasions, including yanking her out of a cab and twisting her arm behind her back before refusing to let her out of a room. She also said he fantasized about killing and raping people.His campaign told the Times that Platner “strongly disputes” the physical intimidation claims. On Monday and Tuesday, Platner lost numerous endorsements, including from Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Democratic Reps. Ro Khanna and Ruben Gallego.Additionally, Maine Democratic Party leadership called on Platner to withdraw from the Senate race.“Maine Democratic Party leadership takes seriously our responsibility to hold every candidate who seeks to represent our state to the highest standard. Over the past several weeks, multiple women have made serious, credible allegations against Graham Platner. Today’s statements take those allegations even further,” the Monday statement said. “Maine Democratic Party leadership is calling on Graham Platner to withdraw as the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate.”Likewise, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee threatened to stop investing in Maine’s Senate race if Platner didn’t drop out.An unnamed source told The New York Times that Platner would only consider withdrawing from the race “with a guarantee of being replaced by a candidate who he believes is true to the values and vision and policy agenda of the campaign that Maine voted for.”The sexual assault allegations added to several other scandals that plagued Platner’s campaign, including his now-removed tattoo associated with the Nazis, explicit text messages sent to women who weren’t his wife, and misogynistic posts he made online.