Overview

• Sanders will headline a Labor Day rally in Portland with Platner and former state senator Troy Jackson, with the venue upgraded to a larger arena for expected crowds.
• Platner, a Marine and Army National Guard veteran who runs an oyster farm, is positioning himself as a working‑class, progressive populist.
• Platner's campaign reports raising $1 million in nine days from small‑dollar donors, with an average contribution of $33.
• Maine Governor Janet Mills says she is seriously considering entering the race, underscoring tensions between progressive and establishment factions.
• Republican Sen. Susan Collins, the Senate Appropriations chair, has recently faced protests in Maine as Democrats eye her seat as a 2026 flip opportunity.