The crowded Maine Senate race to replace Graham Platner has significantly narrowed as Democrats rallied around former state Senate President Troy Jackson in the lead-up to the party's nominating convention on Saturday, July 25, 2026.

After county nominating meetings over the weekend selected delegates, several candidates, including Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, former Maine CDC director Nirav Shah, Maine Beer Company co-founder Dan Kleban, and former Senate and House hopeful Jordan Wood, announced their withdrawal from the race. They encouraged Democrats to unite to defeat the Republican incumbent.

"Democrats don't have a day to waste in unifying around that shared goal," Bellows said in a statement.

Jackson effectively secured the nomination after candidates on his endorsed slate won a majority of the 601 delegate slots that will determine the nominee. While these delegates are not legally bound to vote for him at the nominating convention, they are widely expected to support the fifth-generation logger.

Jackson, 58, has been active in Maine politics since 2002, serving first in the Maine House of Representatives before moving to the state Senate, where he was president from 2018 to 2024.

Maine Democrats have been racing to select a new nominee following Platner's departure earlier this month after a woman accused him of sexual assault.

Sources note that it has "become clear from the county nominating meetings that we lack a path forward" without consolidation. Jackson's rise has been supported by a broad coalition within the party, with some candidates reflecting on their prior support for Platner, citing a desire to change the system in Washington, D.C.

Sources