Graham Platner Suspended His Senate Campaign. Here’s What’s Next for Democrats.

Graham Platner suspended his campaign for Senate in Maine on Wednesday, bowing to intense pressure from party leaders after a rape allegation he denies, and opening an uncertain and highly unusual chapter for Maine Democrats.

Mr. Platner’s exit leaves the Maine Democratic Party less than three weeks to find a replacement to challenge Senator Susan Collins, a vulnerable Republican, in one of the country’s most competitive battlegrounds.

Here’s what comes next:

When and how will Democrats pick a new nominee?

There is no set process by which the state party must choose a replacement, but its leaders said in a statement late Wednesday that it would hold some form of nominating convention.

The deadline to find a new nominee is July 27 under state law. The state party leaders said in their statement that they would soon announce a “full timeline, details for how the nomination process will move forward, information about how to participate, and requirements for candidates.”

Who is angling for the nomination?

Even before Mr. Platner bowed out, a crowd of potential contenders to replace him had already begun to form. And some candidates have already officially said they will run.

Troy Jackson, a former president of the Maine Senate favored by some progressives, announced his bid Wednesday night, as did Jordan Wood, a progressive who lost last month in the House primary in northern Maine’s swing congressional district. Dan Kleban, a founder of a brewery, has also said he will run, writing in a Substack post, “I’m in.”