{"id":4237,"date":"2026-07-11T16:38:46","date_gmt":"2026-07-11T16:38:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237"},"modified":"2026-07-11T16:38:46","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T16:38:46","slug":"new-bernie-sanders-backed-darling-to-replace-graham-platner-has-surprising-conservative-past","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237","title":{"rendered":"New Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Maine Democrats are so desperate to replace accused rapist Graham Platner with another\u00a0rugged \u201cworking-class hero\u201d type that the left wing has thrown its support behind an Allagash logger \u2013 despite a past that\u2019s anything but progressive.<\/p>\n

Read more Beloved ice cream franchise closing 46 locations nationwide \u2014 with one state hit hardest<\/a><\/p>\n

Platner formally withdrew from the race for US Senate Friday after Maine woman Jenny Racicot accused him of drunkenly raping her in 2021 \u2014 clearing the way for another contender to replace him on the ballot against Republican Susan Collins in the November midterms. <\/p>\n

The race is key to which party will control the Senate.<\/p>\n

Troy Jackson, a fifth-generation logger and longtime union member, who served as president of the Maine Senate from 2018 to 2024, looks like the natural successor to Platner \u2014 at least on the surface.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was a logger by trade so he\u2019s got that Maine log man in him,\u201d said former political operative Kurt Bardella, who has advised members of both major parties.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think you\u2019re going to start seeing a real coalescing behind Troy Jackson,\u201d he told News Nation. \u201cIf they don\u2019t get this one right, they\u2019re toast, they\u2019re cooked, they\u2019re not going to win.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jackson, 58, campaigned with both Platner and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) on the \u201cFighting the Oligarchy\u201d tour at the University of Maine in May. He is a longtime ally of the Vermont socialist, having been one of the few Democratic National Committee superdelegates to endorse him over Hillary Clinton in 2016.<\/p>\n

This week, the political organization founded by Sanders after his unsuccessful 2016 presidential run, Our Revolution,\u00a0said it was throwing its \u201cfull organizing machine\u201d behind Jackson\u2019s senate bid, stating he \u201cspent his life in the fight working people are asking for.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was also endorsed by lefty heavyweight Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), who was one of Platner\u2019s top backers in Congress.<\/p>\n

But despite sharing Platner\u2019s left-wing populism on economic issues \u2014 and having been one of his loudest cheerleaders \u2014 Jackson\u2019s political record includes a longtime conversative streak on social matters.<\/p>\n

He first rose to political prominence in 1998 by leading a blockade against Canadian workers along the border and has been accused by critics inside the party of pushing GOP-like anti-immigrant and nationalist rhetoric.<\/p>\n

Read more Baby girl found dead in \u2018apartment\u2019 at NYC hotel<\/a><\/p>\n

In fact, Jackson launched his career as a Republican when he first ran for the Maine legislature in 2000. After losing, he tried again in 2002, but as Independent. In 2004 he morphed again and became a Dem.<\/p>\n

But even after that, some of his positions remained very much right of center. In 2009 he voted against same-sex marriage in the Maine Senate and has long thought abortion should be illegal except in cases of rape or incest \u2014 even when the mother\u2019s life is in danger.<\/p>\n

In 2011, he voted for a state bill that would have declared a fetus a person and in 2013, for mandatory abortion-counseling legislation. Jackson only reversed his views in the last decade, chalking up his earlier positions to his Catholic upbringing.<\/p>\n

Until recently he\u2019s continued to bash Canadian workers, whining that he\u2019s \u201cseen countless foreign loggers cross the border every single day to work in our forests\u201d and authoring legislation in 2022 restricting them from coming to the state even though they had legal work permits.<\/p>\n

Even after a federal judge blocked it, saying it \u201cis not a constitutional means of addressing\u201d concerns about foreign workers, he vowed to continue fighting.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo other state allows this in any occupation. It\u2019s only Maine,\u201d he proclaimed. \u201cI feel strongly about just suing the Department of Labor.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

After the Democrats lost Congress and the White House in the 2024 elections, the party\u2019s desire to win back young white men led them to the poorly vetted Platner \u2014 who was described by GQ as a \u201cvirile, earthy working man\u201d who could win back Trump voters. The Guardian said his aesthetic \u201cseemed to give Democrats the blue-collar cred and performative masculinity they craved.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Jackson, they see another way to capitalize on working-man man vibes.<\/p>\n

Even the \u201cDaily Show\u201d poked fun at the obvious pattern Thursday, quipping that \u201cit\u00a0seems Democratic consultants just want someone stereotypically masculine instead of, you know, someone who\u2019s actually good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more South Africa soccer star Jayden Adams dead at 25 shortly after World Cup success<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The left is so desperate to replace accused rapist Graham Platner with a\u00a0\u201cworking-class hero\u201d that Bernie Sanders and the progressive wing have thrown their support behind an Allagash logger.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4236,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4237","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-us-news"],"yoast_head":"\nNew Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past - Metro Transit Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"New Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past - Metro Transit Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The left is so desperate to replace accused rapist Graham Platner with a\u00a0\u201cworking-class hero\u201d that Bernie Sanders and the progressive wing have thrown their support behind an Allagash logger.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Metro Transit Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-11T16:38:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14\"},\"headline\":\"New Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-11T16:38:46+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237\"},\"wordCount\":738,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/a8c2cf3ea59ae68f87bfa8020308cfe5.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"US News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237\",\"name\":\"New Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past - Metro Transit Review\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/a8c2cf3ea59ae68f87bfa8020308cfe5.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-11T16:38:46+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/a8c2cf3ea59ae68f87bfa8020308cfe5.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/a8c2cf3ea59ae68f87bfa8020308cfe5.webp\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":799},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?p=4237#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"New Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Metro Transit Review\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/metrotransitreview.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"New Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past - Metro Transit Review","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"New Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past - Metro Transit Review","og_description":"The left is so desperate to replace accused rapist Graham Platner with a\u00a0\u201cworking-class hero\u201d that Bernie Sanders and the progressive wing have thrown their support behind an Allagash logger.","og_url":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237","og_site_name":"Metro Transit Review","article_published_time":"2026-07-11T16:38:46+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14"},"headline":"New Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past","datePublished":"2026-07-11T16:38:46+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237"},"wordCount":738,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/a8c2cf3ea59ae68f87bfa8020308cfe5.webp","articleSection":["US News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237","url":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237","name":"New Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past - Metro Transit Review","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/a8c2cf3ea59ae68f87bfa8020308cfe5.webp","datePublished":"2026-07-11T16:38:46+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/a8c2cf3ea59ae68f87bfa8020308cfe5.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/a8c2cf3ea59ae68f87bfa8020308cfe5.webp","width":1200,"height":799},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=4237#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"New Bernie Sanders-backed darling to replace Graham Platner has surprising conservative past"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/","name":"Metro Transit Review","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7cd7bd9683106710eed62ba5da559b14","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/metrotransitreview.com"],"url":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4237","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4237"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4237\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4236"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4237"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4237"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4237"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}