{"id":1329,"date":"2026-07-16T13:06:44","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T13:06:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329"},"modified":"2026-07-16T13:06:44","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T13:06:44","slug":"meet-the-democrats-running-to-replace-graham-platner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329","title":{"rendered":"Meet The Democrats Running To Replace Graham Platner"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Eight Democrats are vying to replace former Senate nominee Graham Platner after he withdrew from the race last week following a string of scandals involving rape allegations, a Nazi tattoo, and controversial online posts that plagued his campaign. They will gather to debate on Thursday evening.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more Trump: Iran Frees Wrongfully Detained American In \u2018Gesture Of Goodwill\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Wednesday was the deadline to file with the Maine Democratic Party. Delegates will choose the party\u2019s replacement nominee from the field of eight at a July 25 convention, with the winner advancing to challenge Republican Sen. Susan Collins. The candidates are scheduled to take the debate stage on Thursday night.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Maine state Sen. Troy Jackson<\/strong> was the first Democrat to jump into the race. A former Republican and fifth-generation logger, Jackson became active in politics while advocating for American loggers competing with lower-paid Canadians. He has since embraced economically leftist policies, including support for organized labor, and has been endorsed by far-left Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). <\/span>Jackson came in third place for Maine\u2019s gubernatorial race behind Nirav Shah who also tossed his hat into the Senatorial race. Jackson <\/span>asked<\/span> News Center Maine, Thursday\u2019s debate host, to allow every candidate to participate in the debate who has filed their candidacy.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Former CDC Deputy Director Nirav Shah <\/strong><\/span>says Platner <\/span>supporters<\/span>\u00a0 \u2018have a home\u2019 in his campaign. Shah practiced as an attorney for six years before going back to school to the University of Chicago to get his doctorate in medicine. He served as Illinois\u2019s Director of Public Health and even served as the Deputy Director of the CDC. Shah left the CDC in 2025 where he serves as a visiting professor at Colby College, a position he held while running his gubernatorial campaign. Shah says he\u2019s running on the grassroots movement he created during his last race. He says his goal is simple, \u201cWe must defeat Susan Collins.\u201d Collins, although a Republican, is arguably the most progressive Republican in the Senate. Collins supports abortion rights, opposed the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, and voted against the 2017 partial appeal of the Affordable Care Act. Shah attacks her platform for voting to support an additional $70 billion to fund the Department of Homeland Security and ICE.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Maine Secretary of State Shanna Bellows <\/strong>said she\u2019s \u2018attracted\u2019 to Graham Platner. If she takes his spot, it will be her second bid to unseat Collins after losing to the Republican incumbent in 2014. <\/span>Collins beat Bellows, taking about two thirds of the vote, in 2014. Bellows claims she\u2019ll have better results this go around because she \u201clearned how to bring people together, how to assemble a professional campaign, and really learned a lot about the stakes\u201d through running for Governor. Bellows, who currently serves as Maine\u2019s Secretary of State, took fourth place in the gubernatorial campaign falling behind Shah and Jackson.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Former Rep. Katie Porter\u2019s chief of staff Jordan Wood <\/strong><\/span>was in a Senate campaign last year. Wood ultimately pivoted his campaign to a spot in the House after Democratic Representative Jared Golden announced he wouldn\u2019t be running for re-election. Wood is a former congressional chief of state for Katie Porter who was known for harsh interactions with her staff and reporters. Wood\u2019s campaign website attributes his campaign mission to \u201cfighting back\u201d against Trump after he was \u201cbarricaded at the Capitol on January 6th.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more African Medicaid Scammers Exposed By Daily Wire Indicted For Fraud, Flee To Africa<\/a><\/p>\n

David Costello<\/strong> is making another run for the Democratic Senate nomination after receiving about 8% of the vote in the primary. Governor Janet Mills and Platner split the other 92%. A longtime public servant, Costello has held positions in city, state, and federal government and has also worked as a climate activist.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Businessman Dan Kleban <\/strong><\/span>dropped out of the Senatorial race before the primary, endorsed Mills over Plattner. Kleban told NBC, \u201cICE needs to be \u2018dismantled\u2019 after a shooting occurred on Tuesday. Kleban is a businessman who founded Maine Beer Company. He says, \u201cI\u2019ve spent years talking to Mainers over a beer in our taproom and throughout the community. We\u2019re all sick and tired of a system that\u2019s been rigged by corporate interests.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Former state Rep. Elizabeth Dickerson<\/strong>, a teacher, says she wants to make \u201ccompassion our guiding principle.\u201d Her campaign has focused on opposing war with Iran, addressing climate change, and resisting Trump\u2019s agenda.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Paige Loud<\/strong>, 29, is the youngest hopeful candidate. \u201c<\/span>A lot of young people and students are disconnected from politics,\u201d she <\/span>said<\/span>. \u201c I remind students that I think our voices need to be in those big rooms where decisions are being made.\u201d<\/span> Loud is currently a social worker. She spent the last eight years in school starting at TTulsa Community College in Maine before obtaining both her bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degree in social work from the University of Maine. Loud says if she wins she will serve but ultimately leave the senate to become a hospice social worker.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Thursday\u2019s debate will begin at 7 pm ET and last 90 minutes, wrapping up half an hour before President Donald Trump is scheduled to address the nation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more Michigan Congresswoman Announces Devastating Personal News<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Eight Democrats are vying to replace former Senate nominee Graham Platner after he withdrew from the race last week following a string of scandals involving rape allegations, a Nazi tattoo, and controversial online posts that plagued his campaign. They will gather to debate on Thursday evening.Wednesday was the deadline to file with the Maine Democratic Party. Delegates will choose the party\u2019s replacement nominee from the field of eight at a July 25 convention, with the winner advancing to challenge Republican Sen. Susan Collins. The candidates are scheduled to take the debate stage on Thursday night.\u00a0Maine state Sen. Troy Jackson was the first Democrat to jump into the race. A former Republican and fifth-generation logger, Jackson became active in politics while advocating for American loggers competing with lower-paid Canadians. He has since embraced economically leftist policies, including support for organized labor, and has been endorsed by far-left Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Jackson came in third place for Maine\u2019s gubernatorial race behind Nirav Shah who also tossed his hat into the Senatorial race. Jackson asked News Center Maine, Thursday\u2019s debate host, to allow every candidate to participate in the debate who has filed their candidacy.\u00a0Former CDC Deputy Director Nirav Shah says Platner supporters\u00a0 \u2018have a home\u2019 in his campaign. Shah practiced as an attorney for six years before going back to school to the University of Chicago to get his doctorate in medicine. He served as Illinois\u2019s Director of Public Health and even served as the Deputy Director of the CDC. Shah left the CDC in 2025 where he serves as a visiting professor at Colby College, a position he held while running his gubernatorial campaign. Shah says he\u2019s running on the grassroots movement he created during his last race. He says his goal is simple, \u201cWe must defeat Susan Collins.\u201d Collins, although a Republican, is arguably the most progressive Republican in the Senate. Collins supports abortion rights, opposed the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, and voted against the 2017 partial appeal of the Affordable Care Act. Shah attacks her platform for voting to support an additional $70 billion to fund the Department of Homeland Security and ICE.\u00a0Maine Secretary of State Shanna Bellows said she\u2019s \u2018attracted\u2019 to Graham Platner. If she takes his spot, it will be her second bid to unseat Collins after losing to the Republican incumbent in 2014. Collins beat Bellows, taking about two thirds of the vote, in 2014. Bellows claims she\u2019ll have better results this go around because she \u201clearned how to bring people together, how to assemble a professional campaign, and really learned a lot about the stakes\u201d through running for Governor. Bellows, who currently serves as Maine\u2019s Secretary of State, took fourth place in the gubernatorial campaign falling behind Shah and Jackson.\u00a0Former Rep. Katie Porter\u2019s chief of staff Jordan Wood was in a Senate campaign last year. Wood ultimately pivoted his campaign to a spot in the House after Democratic Representative Jared Golden announced he wouldn\u2019t be running for re-election. Wood is a former congressional chief of state for Katie Porter who was known for harsh interactions with her staff and reporters. Wood\u2019s campaign website attributes his campaign mission to \u201cfighting back\u201d against Trump after he was \u201cbarricaded at the Capitol on January 6th.\u201d\u00a0David Costello is making another run for the Democratic Senate nomination after receiving about 8% of the vote in the primary. Governor Janet Mills and Platner split the other 92%. A longtime public servant, Costello has held positions in city, state, and federal government and has also worked as a climate activist.\u00a0\u00a0Businessman Dan Kleban dropped out of the Senatorial race before the primary, endorsed Mills over Plattner. Kleban told NBC, \u201cICE needs to be \u2018dismantled\u2019 after a shooting occurred on Tuesday. Kleban is a businessman who founded Maine Beer Company. He says, \u201cI\u2019ve spent years talking to Mainers over a beer in our taproom and throughout the community. We\u2019re all sick and tired of a system that\u2019s been rigged by corporate interests.\u201d\u00a0Former state Rep. Elizabeth Dickerson, a teacher, says she wants to make \u201ccompassion our guiding principle.\u201d Her campaign has focused on opposing war with Iran, addressing climate change, and resisting Trump\u2019s agenda.\u00a0Paige Loud, 29, is the youngest hopeful candidate. \u201cA lot of young people and students are disconnected from politics,\u201d she said. \u201c I remind students that I think our voices need to be in those big rooms where decisions are being made.\u201d Loud is currently a social worker. She spent the last eight years in school starting at TTulsa Community College in Maine before obtaining both her bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degree in social work from the University of Maine. Loud says if she wins she will serve but ultimately leave the senate to become a hospice social worker.\u00a0Thursday\u2019s debate will begin at 7 pm ET and last 90 minutes, wrapping up half an hour before President Donald Trump is scheduled to address the nation.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1328,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1329","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-2"],"yoast_head":"\nMeet The Democrats Running To Replace Graham Platner - Blue Route Journal<\/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:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Meet The Democrats Running To Replace Graham Platner - Blue Route Journal\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Eight Democrats are vying to replace former Senate nominee Graham Platner after he withdrew from the race last week following a string of scandals involving rape allegations, a Nazi tattoo, and controversial online posts that plagued his campaign. They will gather to debate on Thursday evening.Wednesday was the deadline to file with the Maine Democratic Party. Delegates will choose the party\u2019s replacement nominee from the field of eight at a July 25 convention, with the winner advancing to challenge Republican Sen. Susan Collins. The candidates are scheduled to take the debate stage on Thursday night.\u00a0Maine state Sen. Troy Jackson was the first Democrat to jump into the race. A former Republican and fifth-generation logger, Jackson became active in politics while advocating for American loggers competing with lower-paid Canadians. He has since embraced economically leftist policies, including support for organized labor, and has been endorsed by far-left Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Jackson came in third place for Maine\u2019s gubernatorial race behind Nirav Shah who also tossed his hat into the Senatorial race. Jackson asked News Center Maine, Thursday\u2019s debate host, to allow every candidate to participate in the debate who has filed their candidacy.\u00a0Former CDC Deputy Director Nirav Shah says Platner supporters\u00a0 \u2018have a home\u2019 in his campaign. Shah practiced as an attorney for six years before going back to school to the University of Chicago to get his doctorate in medicine. He served as Illinois\u2019s Director of Public Health and even served as the Deputy Director of the CDC. Shah left the CDC in 2025 where he serves as a visiting professor at Colby College, a position he held while running his gubernatorial campaign. Shah says he\u2019s running on the grassroots movement he created during his last race. He says his goal is simple, \u201cWe must defeat Susan Collins.\u201d Collins, although a Republican, is arguably the most progressive Republican in the Senate. Collins supports abortion rights, opposed the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, and voted against the 2017 partial appeal of the Affordable Care Act. Shah attacks her platform for voting to support an additional $70 billion to fund the Department of Homeland Security and ICE.\u00a0Maine Secretary of State Shanna Bellows said she\u2019s \u2018attracted\u2019 to Graham Platner. If she takes his spot, it will be her second bid to unseat Collins after losing to the Republican incumbent in 2014. Collins beat Bellows, taking about two thirds of the vote, in 2014. Bellows claims she\u2019ll have better results this go around because she \u201clearned how to bring people together, how to assemble a professional campaign, and really learned a lot about the stakes\u201d through running for Governor. Bellows, who currently serves as Maine\u2019s Secretary of State, took fourth place in the gubernatorial campaign falling behind Shah and Jackson.\u00a0Former Rep. Katie Porter\u2019s chief of staff Jordan Wood was in a Senate campaign last year. Wood ultimately pivoted his campaign to a spot in the House after Democratic Representative Jared Golden announced he wouldn\u2019t be running for re-election. Wood is a former congressional chief of state for Katie Porter who was known for harsh interactions with her staff and reporters. Wood\u2019s campaign website attributes his campaign mission to \u201cfighting back\u201d against Trump after he was \u201cbarricaded at the Capitol on January 6th.\u201d\u00a0David Costello is making another run for the Democratic Senate nomination after receiving about 8% of the vote in the primary. Governor Janet Mills and Platner split the other 92%. A longtime public servant, Costello has held positions in city, state, and federal government and has also worked as a climate activist.\u00a0\u00a0Businessman Dan Kleban dropped out of the Senatorial race before the primary, endorsed Mills over Plattner. Kleban told NBC, \u201cICE needs to be \u2018dismantled\u2019 after a shooting occurred on Tuesday. Kleban is a businessman who founded Maine Beer Company. He says, \u201cI\u2019ve spent years talking to Mainers over a beer in our taproom and throughout the community. We\u2019re all sick and tired of a system that\u2019s been rigged by corporate interests.\u201d\u00a0Former state Rep. Elizabeth Dickerson, a teacher, says she wants to make \u201ccompassion our guiding principle.\u201d Her campaign has focused on opposing war with Iran, addressing climate change, and resisting Trump\u2019s agenda.\u00a0Paige Loud, 29, is the youngest hopeful candidate. \u201cA lot of young people and students are disconnected from politics,\u201d she said. \u201c I remind students that I think our voices need to be in those big rooms where decisions are being made.\u201d Loud is currently a social worker. She spent the last eight years in school starting at TTulsa Community College in Maine before obtaining both her bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degree in social work from the University of Maine. Loud says if she wins she will serve but ultimately leave the senate to become a hospice social worker.\u00a0Thursday\u2019s debate will begin at 7 pm ET and last 90 minutes, wrapping up half an hour before President Donald Trump is scheduled to address the nation.\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Blue Route Journal\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-16T13:06:44+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:\\\/\\\/blueroutejournal.com\\\/?p=1329#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blueroutejournal.com\\\/?p=1329\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blueroutejournal.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/19da116f8d79cf8987781569801c6b7c\"},\"headline\":\"Meet The Democrats Running To Replace Graham Platner\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-16T13:06:44+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blueroutejournal.com\\\/?p=1329\"},\"wordCount\":876,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blueroutejournal.com\\\/?p=1329#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blueroutejournal.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/0c31106e11d8e305c1addf948c62b76f.avif\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/blueroutejournal.com\\\/?p=1329#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blueroutejournal.com\\\/?p=1329\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blueroutejournal.com\\\/?p=1329\",\"name\":\"Meet The Democrats Running To Replace Graham Platner - 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Blue Route Journal","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:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Meet The Democrats Running To Replace Graham Platner - Blue Route Journal","og_description":"Eight Democrats are vying to replace former Senate nominee Graham Platner after he withdrew from the race last week following a string of scandals involving rape allegations, a Nazi tattoo, and controversial online posts that plagued his campaign. They will gather to debate on Thursday evening.Wednesday was the deadline to file with the Maine Democratic Party. Delegates will choose the party\u2019s replacement nominee from the field of eight at a July 25 convention, with the winner advancing to challenge Republican Sen. Susan Collins. The candidates are scheduled to take the debate stage on Thursday night.\u00a0Maine state Sen. Troy Jackson was the first Democrat to jump into the race. A former Republican and fifth-generation logger, Jackson became active in politics while advocating for American loggers competing with lower-paid Canadians. He has since embraced economically leftist policies, including support for organized labor, and has been endorsed by far-left Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Jackson came in third place for Maine\u2019s gubernatorial race behind Nirav Shah who also tossed his hat into the Senatorial race. Jackson asked News Center Maine, Thursday\u2019s debate host, to allow every candidate to participate in the debate who has filed their candidacy.\u00a0Former CDC Deputy Director Nirav Shah says Platner supporters\u00a0 \u2018have a home\u2019 in his campaign. Shah practiced as an attorney for six years before going back to school to the University of Chicago to get his doctorate in medicine. He served as Illinois\u2019s Director of Public Health and even served as the Deputy Director of the CDC. Shah left the CDC in 2025 where he serves as a visiting professor at Colby College, a position he held while running his gubernatorial campaign. Shah says he\u2019s running on the grassroots movement he created during his last race. He says his goal is simple, \u201cWe must defeat Susan Collins.\u201d Collins, although a Republican, is arguably the most progressive Republican in the Senate. Collins supports abortion rights, opposed the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, and voted against the 2017 partial appeal of the Affordable Care Act. Shah attacks her platform for voting to support an additional $70 billion to fund the Department of Homeland Security and ICE.\u00a0Maine Secretary of State Shanna Bellows said she\u2019s \u2018attracted\u2019 to Graham Platner. If she takes his spot, it will be her second bid to unseat Collins after losing to the Republican incumbent in 2014. Collins beat Bellows, taking about two thirds of the vote, in 2014. Bellows claims she\u2019ll have better results this go around because she \u201clearned how to bring people together, how to assemble a professional campaign, and really learned a lot about the stakes\u201d through running for Governor. Bellows, who currently serves as Maine\u2019s Secretary of State, took fourth place in the gubernatorial campaign falling behind Shah and Jackson.\u00a0Former Rep. Katie Porter\u2019s chief of staff Jordan Wood was in a Senate campaign last year. Wood ultimately pivoted his campaign to a spot in the House after Democratic Representative Jared Golden announced he wouldn\u2019t be running for re-election. Wood is a former congressional chief of state for Katie Porter who was known for harsh interactions with her staff and reporters. Wood\u2019s campaign website attributes his campaign mission to \u201cfighting back\u201d against Trump after he was \u201cbarricaded at the Capitol on January 6th.\u201d\u00a0David Costello is making another run for the Democratic Senate nomination after receiving about 8% of the vote in the primary. Governor Janet Mills and Platner split the other 92%. A longtime public servant, Costello has held positions in city, state, and federal government and has also worked as a climate activist.\u00a0\u00a0Businessman Dan Kleban dropped out of the Senatorial race before the primary, endorsed Mills over Plattner. Kleban told NBC, \u201cICE needs to be \u2018dismantled\u2019 after a shooting occurred on Tuesday. Kleban is a businessman who founded Maine Beer Company. He says, \u201cI\u2019ve spent years talking to Mainers over a beer in our taproom and throughout the community. We\u2019re all sick and tired of a system that\u2019s been rigged by corporate interests.\u201d\u00a0Former state Rep. Elizabeth Dickerson, a teacher, says she wants to make \u201ccompassion our guiding principle.\u201d Her campaign has focused on opposing war with Iran, addressing climate change, and resisting Trump\u2019s agenda.\u00a0Paige Loud, 29, is the youngest hopeful candidate. \u201cA lot of young people and students are disconnected from politics,\u201d she said. \u201c I remind students that I think our voices need to be in those big rooms where decisions are being made.\u201d Loud is currently a social worker. She spent the last eight years in school starting at TTulsa Community College in Maine before obtaining both her bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degree in social work from the University of Maine. Loud says if she wins she will serve but ultimately leave the senate to become a hospice social worker.\u00a0Thursday\u2019s debate will begin at 7 pm ET and last 90 minutes, wrapping up half an hour before President Donald Trump is scheduled to address the nation.\u00a0","og_url":"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329","og_site_name":"Blue Route Journal","article_published_time":"2026-07-16T13:06:44+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:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/#\/schema\/person\/19da116f8d79cf8987781569801c6b7c"},"headline":"Meet The Democrats Running To Replace Graham Platner","datePublished":"2026-07-16T13:06:44+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329"},"wordCount":876,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/0c31106e11d8e305c1addf948c62b76f.avif","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329","url":"https:\/\/blueroutejournal.com\/?p=1329","name":"Meet The Democrats Running To Replace Graham Platner - 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