面临性侵指控，美国缅因州民主党参议员候选人普拉特纳遭遇党内集体逼退Maine Democratic Senate Nominee Graham Platner Faces Intense Pressure to Withdraw After Sexual Assault Allegation

这起指控最早由《政客》于周一报道。41岁的珍妮·拉西科特称，她与普拉特纳于2019年通过约会软件相识并曾自愿交往。但她指控普拉特纳在2021年底“几乎醉到断片”时，未经允许闯入她家并强行与她发生无保护性关系。拉西科特随后在CNN采访中向主持人杰克·塔珀表示，普拉特纳的行为在定义上“绝对”属于强奸，并否认此举有政治动机。

The allegation first emerged in a Politico report on Monday, detailing claims by 41-year-old Maine resident Jenny Racicot. Racicot, who met Graham Platner on a dating app in 2019 and had previously engaged in consensual relations with him, stated that Platner entered her home without permission in late 2021 while "almost blackout drunk" and forced her to have unprotected sex. In a subsequent CNN interview with Jake Tapper, Racicot affirmed that Platner had "absolutely" raped her by definition, while denying any political motivation behind her decision to come forward.

普拉特纳在报道发表后立即发布视频予以否认，称任何非自愿行为的指控都“完全不属实”。但他承认了这一报道带来的政治现实，表示正在花时间反思对该州和其运动最合适的前行道路。普拉特纳强调了其竞选活动拥有的庞大志愿者基础和草根捐款人，但并未宣布退出竞选。

Platner immediately rejected the claims in a video statement posted to social media shortly after the report was published. While calling any accusation of non-consensual behavior "categorically false," he acknowledged the political fallout of the reporting. Platner stated that his campaign is taking time to reflect on the best path forward for the state and his movement, pointing to his campaign's large volunteer base and grassroots donors, though he stopped short of withdrawing from the race.

在针对普拉特纳的指控公开后，民主党高层迅速与其划清界限。参议院少数党领袖查克·舒默与民主党全国委员会主席肯·马丁均公开表态，要求普拉特纳立即退出竞选。缅因州民主党领导层也发表声明呼吁其退选，并强调他们有责任让每一位寻求代表该州的候选人符合最高标准。此外，纽约州联邦参议员、民主党参议院竞选委员会主席基尔斯滕·吉利布兰德也加入了要求其退选的行列。

Following the publication of the allegation, top Democratic leaders moved swiftly to distance themselves from Platner. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin both publicly declared that Platner must immediately end his campaign. The leadership of the Maine Democratic Party also issued a statement urging him to drop out, stating it is their responsibility to hold every candidate seeking to represent the state to the highest standard. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, who chairs the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, joined Schumer in calling for Platner's immediate withdrawal.

与此同时，民主党内三大关键竞选组织已决定撤回对该选区的资金和资源支持。民主党参议院竞选委员会此前正在与普拉特纳建立联合筹款委员会，但该委员会周一宣布，如果普拉特纳继续留在选票上，将不再对该选举进行投资。民主党全国委员会也停止了与普拉特纳的联合筹款活动。此外，支持参议院民主党人的最大超级政治行动委员会——参议院多数党政治行动委员会宣布，在最新指控曝光后，该组织正将资源从缅因州参议院选举中转移。

Concurrently, the three major Democratic campaign organizations decided to pull back their financial and organizational support from the race. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which was in the process of establishing a joint fundraising committee with Platner, announced on Monday that it will no longer invest in the Maine Senate race if he remains on the ballot. The Democratic National Committee has also ceased its fundraising efforts with him. Furthermore, Senate Majority PAC, the largest super PAC backing Senate Democrats, announced it is redirecting its resources away from the Maine Senate race following the latest allegations.

随着指控细节的曝光，普拉特纳在党内进步派阵营中的核心支持力量也迅速瓦解。此前一直大力支持普拉特纳的进步派关键盟友，包括加利福尼亚州联邦众议员罗·康纳和马萨诸塞州联邦参议员伊丽莎白·沃伦，均已公开宣布撤回对他的背书，并要求其退出缅因州参议院选举。这些重要盟友的表态，使得普拉特纳在党内面临的孤立处境进一步加深。

The fallout from the allegation has rapidly eroded Platner's support within the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, which had previously served as a cornerstone of his campaign. Key progressive allies, including Representative Ro Khanna of California and Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, have officially rescinded their endorsements. Both lawmakers have publicly called on the Democratic nominee to exit the Maine Senate race, significantly deepening his political isolation.

其中，联邦众议员罗·康纳明确将这一性侵指控称为不可逾越的“红线”。康纳在撤回背书的同时，公开呼吁普拉特纳暂停其竞选活动。这一表态发生在《政客》发表关于珍妮·拉西科特指控的爆炸性报道之后，表明即使是普拉特纳最坚定的进步派盟友，在面对如此严重的指控时也选择迅速与其切割，不再为其竞选活动提供政治背书。

Representative Khanna was particularly direct in his response, characterizing the sexual assault allegation as a "red line" that could not be crossed. Following the publication of the bombshell report by Politico, Khanna withdrew his support and urged Platner to suspend his campaign immediately. The swift defection of high-profile progressive leaders like Khanna and Warren underscores how quickly Platner's coalition has collapsed in the wake of the accusation.

格雷厄姆·普拉特纳此前凭借民粹主义和进步派主张迅速崛起，赢得了今年的民主党提名。作为一名退役海军陆战队战斗队员和牡蛎养殖户，他发起的竞选活动旨在挑战已连任五届的共和党现任联邦参议员苏珊·柯林斯。柯林斯是目前新英格兰地区在国会中唯一的共和党议员。由于该席位对于民主党争夺参议院控制权至关重要，这场对决原本被视为民主党必须取胜的关键战役，而此次性侵指控使该选区的选情陷入了极大的不确定性。

Graham Platner, a Marine veteran and oysterman, rocketed to the Democratic nomination this year on a populist and progressive platform. His campaign was built around unseating five-term incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins, who is currently the only Republican in Congress representing New England. Because this battleground contest is considered pivotal to the Democrats' chances of gaining control of the Senate, the race was viewed as a must-win for the party, making the sudden collapse of support for their nominee a severe blow to their national strategy.

在此次性侵丑闻爆发之前，普拉特纳的竞选活动就已经因多项丑闻而备受打击。其中最引人关注的争议是，他被发现胸前有一处类似于纳粹标志的纹身。尽管面临这些过往争议，普拉特纳此前依然依靠其建立的庞大志愿者基础和数十万草根捐款人维持着竞选势头。然而，随着最新性侵指控的披露，这位饱受丑闻困扰的政治局外人不仅让民主党夺取参议院控制权的计划面临考验，也使他自己面临着在候选人更换截止日期前退选的巨大压力。

Even before the sexual assault allegation emerged, Platner's campaign had been repeatedly rocked by multiple scandals, most notably the discovery of a controversial tattoo on his chest resembling a Nazi symbol. Despite these prior controversies, Platner had maintained his candidacy by pointing to his campaign's large volunteer base and hundreds of thousands of grassroots donors. However, this latest and most severe accusation has thrown the crucial Senate race into deep uncertainty, leaving the scandal-plagued political outsider facing immense pressure to drop out as a key deadline to replace him on the Maine ballot looms.