79-Year-Old Janet Mills Launches Senate Run—Why We Must Choose Graham Platner Instead

U.S. Marine Veteran Graham Platner (41) represents a new hope and the voice of the American people—it's time to elect him as our next U.S. Senator from Maine

This morning, 79-year-old Maine Governor Janet Mills announced she’s running for the U.S. Senate. If elected, she would be the oldest first term senator in U.S. history, and 85 at the end of her first term. Here’s the thing. If you care about democracy, about generational renewal, and about leadership that actually serves working people—this news should make your blood boil. Especially when we have a proven young leader in U.S. Marine Veteran Graham Platner—who beats Mills and Susan Collins in polling, who brings effective policy for working people, and most importantly, who brings principles and moral courage to fight fascism. Let’s Address This.

One On One With Graham Platner

Let’s be clear. This isn’t just about Maine. It’s about a national crisis of leadership—a political class that refuses to cede power, even as the country burns. We are ruled by people clinging to authority long after they’ve lost the courage to use it for good. And if they won’t step aside, then we have no choice but to organize, activate, and take it back. Here’s how we do it—and why Graham Platner represents the new generation of leadership our nation desperately needs.

1. We Don’t Need Another Octogenarian Senator

Let’s start with the obvious. If Janet Mills wins, she’ll be older than Joe Biden was when he became President. That’s not experience—that’s stagnation. It means we’ve learned literally nothing, especially as five elderly Democratic members of Congress have died in office in the last year alone. How do we avoid this? Well, we can start by electing strong young leaders like Graham Platner.

Look, Democrats are hemorrhaging trust among young and working-class voters who want a future, not a museum. The party’s addiction to nostalgia has already cost us the Senate, the Supreme Court, and the moral high ground. We don’t need more politicians who “wait their turn.” We need corporate funded octogenarians to get out of the way, stop sabotaging our future, and to go enjoy life with their great grand kids.

2. Graham Platner Represents the Future

Graham Platner is the real deal—a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who lives a working class life. He knows what sacrifice means. He knows what leadership means. He’s fought for his country, and now he’s fighting for working families—for universal healthcare, affordable housing, climate justice, and a living wage. The moral crisis of our time seeks politicians who stand up for working people here at home, and just foreign policy abroad. Graham Platner is unapologetically pro labor union, and unapologetically anti-genocide. He’s been relentless in his demands of “not one more bomb for genocide in Palestine,” and instead invest in working people here at home. Neither Janet Mills nor Susan Collins has had the courage to stand on this moral principle. That alone should disqualify them.

Graham is running because he’s lived the struggle of working people, seen the horrors of war, and wants to move America in a different direction—one of justice. See my recent interview with him below, and hear it in his own words.

3. The Data Speaks for Itself

The latest Zenith Poll shows that after voters read both candidates’ bios, Platner outperforms Mills by six points. Six points before his campaign even goes full throttle. Moreover, while the Democratic Party currently has an abysmal 26% approval rating, Mills is additionally the least popular Democratic Governor in the country. The Morning Consult reports:

Mills trends in the wrong direction: Janet Mills of Maine is term-limited as governor and viewed as one of the Democratic Party’s best options to challenge moderate Republican Sen. Susan Collins in next year’s midterm elections. But she’s also the most unpopular Democratic governor in the country, and one of the only to lose popularity since the last quarter of 2024.

Voters aren’t asking for more of the same. They’re asking for a leader who can win, who can inspire, who can actually deliver. Graham Platner is that leader.

4. Graham Builds Coalitions — Mills Builds Comfort

Moreover, Graham Platner is endorsed by the Maine State Nurses Association, Ironworkers Local 7, Bernie Sanders, Ro Khanna, and Martin Heinrich. His campaign is uniting progressives, independents, and working-class Mainers in a coalition powerful enough to finally retire Susan Collins for good. We need Graham to win because that will likely help flip control of the Senate away from Trump. Therefore, this is national priority we must all pay attention to.

Meanwhile, Janet Mills has spent years cozying up to Collins — literally saying, “I appreciate everything she’s doing.” I’m sorry but given Collins’ cowardice and capitulation to Trump and his fascism—Mills ”appreciating” everything she’s doing is an admission that one, she does not understand the urgency of now, and two, she is still minimizing the danger that Trump poses. That is inexcusable and indefensible.

5. Democrats Must Stand for Something Again

Finally, if you’re wondering why Mills is the most unpopular Democratic Governor in the country, it’s because of her record. Governor Mills has vetoed farmworker labor rights, blocked tribal sovereignty, and opposed taxing the wealthy. That is not courage. It’s capitulation and indistinguishable from Susan Collins.

That should be very concerning.

Democrats cannot keep rewarding leaders who side with corporations over workers, and then wonder why people stop believing in us. It’s not complicated—if we want working people to show up for democracy, we must show working people a democracy worth showing up for. Graham Platner is pro Union, pro taxing billionaires, pro Indigenous rights, and pro telling the establishment to grow a spine or step aside.

What Happens Now

Janet Mills announcing her Senate campaign should light a fire under every one of us. The people in power will not hand it over. They will not step aside.

So we must take it — not through violence or chaos, but through collective action. Through organizing, donating, showing up, and voting for leaders like Graham Platner who still believe government can serve people, not profit.

This is how we retire Susan Collins. This is how we restore faith in our party. This is how we build a future that looks like the people it serves.

Take Action

✅ Visit Graham’s website—donate what you can, volunteer, spread the word.
✅ Share this article and the video interview.
✅ Talk to your friends and family in Maine.

Because the fight for Maine’s Senate seat is a fight for the soul of our democracy. Graham Platner exemplifies the fighting spirit, the justice based principles, and the proven leader that our Party and Country needs to fight fascism and protect working people. Join me in donating to his campaign, sharing his message, and winning back the United States Senate.