Former Graham Platner girlfriend describes alleged violence, which he denies

CNN

By Jake Tapper, Allison Gordon, Casey Tolan, Curt Devine, CNN

(CNN) — A former girlfriend of Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner who had previously accused him of violence told CNN she was heartened that he was facing broad calls to drop out of the race after another woman accused him of rape.

Lyndsey Fifield described her own alleged mistreatment by Platner for the first time on camera to CNN on Tuesday, saying that he repeatedly grabbed her, at times leaving bruises, and once blocked her inside a bedroom while they were dating more than a decade ago.

Her interview came a day after Jenny Racicot, who casually dated Platner for two years, accused him of coming into her home without permission and raping her while he was heavily intoxicated. Her account in interviews with Politico and CNN, which Platner denied, led to a chorus of Democratic officials calling on Platner to end his campaign.

Fifield said she was inspired by Racicot’s bravery coming forward and felt “relief” that endorsers like Sen. Bernie Sanders urged Platner to drop out of the race. At the same time, she said, she was disturbed that her own allegations about Platner’s behavior, which were published by the New York Times last month, didn’t spark similar condemnation from Platner’s supporters.

“As much as I’m grateful and I’m glad and I hope that finally this was enough,” Fifield said, she also described feeling “pain” that “my accusations weren’t enough.”

In a statement, Platner’s campaign called Fifield’s allegations “categorically false” and said they come “from a person with a well-documented political agenda.”

Speaking to the Times last month, Platner said he “too often self medicated with alcohol, and was a far from perfect boyfriend” during what he described as a “very dark period of my life.”

“I take responsibility for all of that, and wish I had been better,” he added at the time. “Any characterization beyond that is false, and I believe, politically motivated. I’m not proud of who I was then, but I am proud of the work I’ve done since, and the movement we are building in Maine.”

Fifield met Platner in 2013 when Platner was a student at George Washington University and she was working in D.C., and they dated on and off in 2013 and 2014, she said. In the interview with CNN, she described Platner as struggling with serious alcohol problems and being violent toward her.

Fifield said Platner regularly grabbed her, sometimes hard enough to leave marks, while they were dating. One time during an argument, she said, Platner grabbed her arm, shoved her into a bedroom, and held the door closed so she couldn’t leave.

At times when they were having sex, Fifield said, Platner would remove the condom he was wearing without telling her, and when she confronted him about it, he would make up excuses or deflect. “The worst and most violating part was how often he would do that secretly,” she said. The Washington Post first reported her allegation.

Emily Zanotti, a friend of Fifield’s, told CNN that Fifield said years ago that she had been trying to avoid pregnancy while she was dating Platner, but that Platner would remove condoms during sex.

“I knew that Graham had been a really destructive force in her life,” Zanotti said.

In a statement to the Post about the allegation, Platner’s campaign called it false and politically motivated.

Fifield said Platner at times scared her with his behavior toward her when he was drunk. She said he was “very physically rough,” although she noted that Platner “never hit me, never slapped me.”

Platner’s campaign told the Times last month that he “strongly disputes” any claims of physical intimidation or altercations, and this week, his campaign said he “vigorously denies” Racicot’s allegation of rape. Platner said in a video posted on X that “any accusation of nonconsensual behavior is categorically false,” but that he would “reflect on the best path forward” in the Senate race.

Fifield has a history of working on Republican campaigns and for conservative groups, including the Heritage Foundation and Nikki Haley’s 2024 presidential campaign. After the Times story was published, some Platner supporters pointed to Fifield’s political history when defending him against her claims.

Fifield said she faced online attacks that led to her feeling “in a very dark place.”

“It felt very violating and it felt very dismissive,” Fifield said. “It was like they minimized what were clearly very painful, I mean, probably the most painful memories of my life.”

Fifield told CNN that she hadn’t shared her story about Platner for any political motive.

“I wanted to tell the truth because it felt like watching him lie was just so difficult for me,” she said. “I don’t care about the Maine Senate race, that’s not on my radar – I’m going to Pilates with my kids.”

Like Racicot, she said she had connected with the progressive activist and lawyer Cheyenne Hunt, who encouraged her to share her story on the record with CNN.

Fifield said she was concerned by the idea that the man she had seen behind closed doors could reach a position of power.

“You can’t be that way in private and not have it translate into how you would govern or how you would legislate,” she said. “It terrifies me to think of him having any type of power politically, because what is he going to do with the women in his office?”

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