Nazi Tattoo Guy Has Chuck Schumer’s Handpicked Candidate On The Ropes

Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner is increasingly confident that he will defeat Gov. Janet Mills in the June primary.

Platner has a 22% average lead in primary surveys, according to RealClearPolling, despite the early days of his campaign being marred by scandal over a now-covered Nazi symbol tattoo and several resurfaced Reddit posts from the early 2010s in which he made demeaning comments about women and proclaimed that he “became a communist.”

Platner’s campaign manager Ben Chin told Axios that the campaign is “shifting gears and going full steam ahead into the general,” but noted they “aren’t taking our foot [off] the gas in the primary.”

Mills is backed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who sees her as a critical piece to winning back control of the chamber, whereas Platner has garnered the endorsements of Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).

“We’re feeling emboldened,” Chin told the outlet.

Mills has gone on the attack against Platner in recent commercials, highlighting his scandals and running with the tagline, “Graham Platner: The closer you look, the worse it gets.”

One advertisement in particular features older, white women reacting to the populist Democrat’s comments on Reddit with disgust, but Platner’s campaign appears to have bounced back following his apology over the posts in the fall.

“These comments are shameful,” Mills continued to hammer the point home via X on March 24. “While my opponent was saying this not long ago, I was fighting as Attorney General and Governor to deliver progress for Maine people.”

A Republican strategist familiar with the race told The Daily Wire that the race remains a “target-rich environment” that could ultimately benefit Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), who will face off against whoever wins the primary.

“It’s not really breaking through for her,” the strategist said regarding the Mills attack ads, adding that it’s “definitely not looking good” for the governor’s campaign.

In terms of the overall Republican approach, given Platner’s staying power, the strategist noted that it’s “equal opportunity until the day she drops out” and the Republicans will continue to “keep hammering on both.”

Collins defeated Democrat Sara Gideon in 2020 with just under 51% compared with Gideon’s roughly 42%. The Cook Political Report rates the general election race as a “toss-up,” along with the contests in North Carolina, Georgia, and Michigan.

Republicans hold a narrow 53-47 majority in the chamber, and a flip could result in radically different policies headed to President Donald Trump’s desk in the second half of his term.

The Daily Wire reached out to the Mills, Platner, and Collins campaigns for comment.