Cory Booker

U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) is expressing worries that Graham Platner, the presumptive Democratic nominee for Senate in Maine, could tank the party’s chances in winning control of the upper chamber during the 2026 midterm elections.

Platner struck a defiant tone Sunday in response to the latest controversy to hit his Senate campaign. The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal reported over the weekend that Platner had sent sexual messages to several women outside of his marriage — reports that he went on to characterize as “journalistic malpractice.”

According to the reports, Amy Gertner, the wife of the oyster farmer and combat veteran, told former senior campaign staffer Genevieve McDonald about the exchanges. Gertner has since described the stories as “shameful” and “gossip” in a five-minute video posted on social media.

“No marriage is perfect, and I don’t want a perfect marriage,” she said in a post Saturday from Platner. “I want my marriage.”

Booker voiced concern Sunday when asked by ABC’s Jonathan Karl about whether Platner’s “controversies” may jeopardize Democrats’ chances in flipping the seat.

“Yes, I have concerns,” Booker said on “This Week,” adding: “That guy has questions to answer. And that’s what campaigns are for.”

Booker went on to emphasize that the Democratic Party needs to win back both chambers of Congress in November — or else “we will continue to have an out-of-control president.”

“When I go all over New Jersey and see hundreds and hundreds of thousands of New Jerseyans losing their health care and millions more seeing their health care costs go up, as I have families who say, ‘I can’t afford gas for my car and child care for my children,’ I know that so much is riding on Democrats taking control of the Senate,” Booker said.

Platner is seeking the Democratic nomination for one of the most closely watched Senate races, with the primary set for June 9.

Platner has also faced a number of other allegations, including a since-removed tattoo that resembled a Nazi symbol and past controversial comments on Reddit minimizing sexual assault and making crude remarks about masturbation.

In a statement to the Journal, his wife said: “I confided deeply personal details about my marriage to someone I considered a friend. In the months since, I have had to watch as she spread malicious gossip to anyone who would take her call. I trusted this person with the most private chapter of our lives — the early days of our marriage before any campaign was on our mind — and I am deeply hurt by her betrayal and the invasion of our privacy.”