By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2026-05-30 21:17:07 | Updated at 2026-06-07 15:34:39
1 week ago
A Maine Democratic Senate candidate could see his campaign upended after his wife revealed he had sent sexually explicit messages to several women while they were desperately trying to conceive through IVF.
Graham Platner, 40, is hoping to upset Republican Susan Collins' seat in the Senate, but the Bernie Sanders-backed candidate, who has run his campaign on making healthcare affordable, could face a setback after scandalous texts were revealed.
His wife, Amy Gertner, had told his campaign last year that she had found her husband talking to at least six women via text, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times reported.
She disclosed the information to Genevieve McDonald, who was Platner's political director until October, NYT reported.
Gertner considered McDonald a friend and told her the information right before Platner was supposed to join a rally with Sanders over Labor Day weekend as she feared it might become a liability, WSJ said.
Aides decided the messages were a private matter and the rally went on as scheduled, a campaign official told WSJ.
The couple handled the issue in marriage counseling, and the texts have never publicly been revealed.
'We did the hard work that marriage requires,' Gertner said through her husband's campaign.
Graham Platner, 40, reported was sexually texting many women behind his wife's back last year, his wife revealed to his campaign
Gertner disclosed the information to an aide she considered a friend right before Platner was supposed to join a rally with Sanders over Labor Day weekend
'We were honest with each other in ways that weren’t easy. And we came through it, not in spite of how much we’ve been through, but because of how much we love each other and the life we’ve built.'
The wife, who is employed by her husband's campaign, insisted her marriage to the oyster farmer was 'stronger than ever before.'
'I know who Graham is. I know the man I married and the husband he has been to me on the best and the worst days of my life. That hasn’t changed, and it won’t,' she said.
The text came as the couple navigated IVF as they were struggling to conceive, she told the Bangor Daily News in January.
They did the reproductive treatment in Norway, as the cost of doing it in the US far exceeded their financial capacity, she said.
Platner, who is a veteran, was unable to get any help from the VA.
'He has A+ sperm,' his wife told the outlet. 'So the VA is not giving us any money.'
The couple's journey to conceive has become an essential part of the Democrat's campaign.
His campaign determined the matter was private and allowed the candidate to continue with the event that involved Bernie Sanders backing him in the Senate race
Gertner, who is employed by her husband's campaign, said the couple dealt with their marital issues in therapy
The couple met in 2021 when they were in other relationships, but later reconnected on Bumble, a dating app. They dated for six months before getting married in 2023, and they started trying for a child soon after.
The explicit texts are not the first scandal the wannabe father has found himself in since launching his Senate campaign.
He had to delete an old Reddit account, which included comments downplaying sexual assault and vulgar remarks about sex workers, WSJ reported.
He also reportedly made comments suggesting he had lenient views about infidelity.
In one post, he reportedly wrote about 'getting wasted and bragging about all the chicks he was slaying who weren’t his wife' at a local bar, WSJ reported.
'I’ve got a pretty flexible moral compass when it comes to those things,' he reportedly said.
He also admitted to having a Nazi tattoo, which he has since covered up, the outlet said.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Platner for comment.
