Dear Editor:

Friday morning, I engaged with a post on the Instagram account of U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner. My comment was not a personal attack, but a critique of messaging and political culture. Earlier that day, I had been watching a panel of reporters, cultural critics and activists discussing a racist meme Donald Trump posted and later deleted about the Obamas.

Like many people, I’ve had a hard time disengaging from the nonstop dystopian news cycle. One point from that discussion stuck with me: a racist president does not emerge in a vacuum, but from history and cultural norms. It made me think about how often we focus on political figures as personalities or celebrities rather than the communities they are meant to serve. It also pushed me back to question how some people are more readily granted credibility, relatability and benefit of the doubt than others.

That same morning, I saw a Platner post celebrating his status as a Senate frontrunner. Even though I wasn’t sure any good would come of it, I decided to speak up. My comment was sharp but focused: I may ultimately support his policy positions, but I questioned ego-driven messaging and the tendency to rally around someone simply because they feel relatable, even when others have long championed the same ideas.

My motivation was not that I dislike Graham Platner, or even that I don’t personally relate to him. I grew up in rural Maine. I’ve worked since high school to put myself through college. I have friends from many demographics, viewpoints, and walks of life, including veterans who are no longer with us. I’m outspoken, and in some ways I can see pieces of myself in Graham, as much as a woman can. I was initially excited about his candidacy and even defended his rugged, relatable rhetoric to my skeptical mother.

Later, I learned about past comments he made about sexual assault in the military and about Black people tipping. I was told those remarks were from 2012 by people I respect, but it has still been a lot to grapple with. Wanting to be fair, I attended an event where he spoke at Biddeford Middle School. In person, he was engaging and more humble than his social media presence suggests. He spoke about hardworking Mainers and real community issues (he also mentioned liking Kurt Vonnegut — hey look, not something I’m gonna base my vote on, but respect). I found him personable, but I also noticed him shy away from more specific policy questions. That mirrors what I see in his campaign messaging: broad themes, with far less discussion of specific legislation.

He does come across as an everyman. It’s admirable that he served as a Marine. It’s also great that he was able to fly his wife out of the country for IVF, and I fully support access to that care. But that level of access isn’t feasible for many Mainers. Is he really the everyman of Maine?

I also find myself questioning why many people readily frame him as inherently virtuous. Is it the polished image? But if I suggest it may also relate to who he is and how he presents, I risk being accused of “identity politics,” yet image clearly plays a role in how candidates are received. More than that, the tone of his campaign also gives me pause. Much of his messaging focuses on projecting confidence, bravado, and victory, while specifics go unaddressed.

I question why we so often elevate candidates based on relatability and image rather than depth of policy discussion. For me, this raises broader questions about who we instinctively see as credible and why. Is this result of a two-party system? Of our own ability to embrace nuance? Modern culture? Something else? 

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I question why we so often elevate

candidates based on relatability and image

rather than depth of policy discussion.

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When I made my comment, perhaps not unexpectedly, I received dismissive replies from his supporters. One person, who said he was a friend of Graham’s, said I seemed “insufferable” and focused on defending Mr. Platner’s character instead of addressing the substance of my comment. Another person mischaracterized my argument in a way that echoed familiar tropes often used to trivialize women’s political voices, and suggested I must think Graham is unintelligent because he is a man. After several rounds in which he ignored my actual points and resorted to personal attacks, I checked his profile and saw that he does not appear to be a U.S. voter.

I continued monitoring the comments partly out of concern, because expressing political opinions online can invite harassment. I then noticed that Waukeag Oyster Company, an oyster farm business founded by Graham Platner, “liked” comments suggesting my critique was simply about him being a man, while my original comment went unanswered. Public “likes” may seem small, but they signal which messages a campaign chooses to acknowledge or amplify. I do not know whether it was Graham himself, a business partner, or a social media manager engaging with those comments. Still, liking a response that framed my critique as gender-based, rather than engaging with the substance of what I said, felt dismissive and unnecessarily divisive. Especially considering that this person, according to their Instagram bio, is not even part of Mr. Platner’s voter base.

I messaged Waukeag Oyster Company to point this out and received no response.

Look, if Graham Platner gets elected, I can live with it. I may end up voting for him if he is truly the frontrunner, and I will more than likely include him in my ranked-choice ballot in the primaries. But what concerns me is when supporters place personality and relatability over policy. In an age of rising authoritarian tendencies, we should be asking where solidarity turns into conformity, and why we tolerate brashness in some demographics while condemning it in others. Not for the sake of purity, but for equity and for preserving our own critical thinking, rather than saying yes to whoever is speaking the loudest.

Sincerely,

Victoria Gordon, Biddeford

Note: Victoria Gordon serves on the Biddeford Gazette’s Advisory Board, The Gazette welcomes letters and guest columns from its readers. More information here: CONNECT WITH US

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