Nirav D Shah enters Maine Senate race after Democrat Platner quits

Washington,UPDATED: Jul 9, 2026 23:14 IST

Epidemiologist Nirav D Shah, who lost the Democratic primary for governor of Maine, on Thursday entered the race for the US Senate from the state after Graham Platner withdrew his candidature amid allegations of sexual assault.

Born in Wisconsin to Indian immigrants, Shah is seeking to become the Democratic challenger to Republican Susan Collins, who has represented Maine in the Senate since 1997. Under state law, the Maine Democratic Party has until July 27 to name a replacement candidate.

In a post on X launching his campaign, Shah said, "As your next United States Senator, I will fight for Medicare for All because nobody in the wealthiest country on earth should go bankrupt over a medical bill."

Platner, who won the Democratic primary for the Senate election, withdrew from the race on Wednesday amid allegations of sexual assault, which he called "false".

Shah also said on X, "Establishment politicians have failed us. To defeat Susan Collins, we need an outsider who is not afraid to take on the broken system she has spent decades upholding."

Troy Jackson, who also ran in the state governor primary, was the first to announce his candidacy for the US Senate election after Platner said he was stepping aside on Wednesday.

Shah served as director of the Maine Centre for Disease Control during the COVID-19 pandemic and finished second in the final round of the Democratic primary for governor. He also served as principal deputy director, the second-in-command, at the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention during President Joe Biden's tenure. He was also director of the Illinois Health Department.

Shah completed his medical and law degrees at the University of Chicago. After graduating from college, he studied economics at Oxford University.

He is currently a visiting professor at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. His LinkedIn profile says he speaks Gujarati, Khmer and Spanish apart from English. Shah is married to Kara Palamountain, a research professor at Northwestern University, and the couple are avid home cooks.

Shah's Senate bid comes soon after his loss in the Maine governor primary and follows the sudden vacancy in the Democratic contest after Platner's withdrawal.

With PTI Inputs

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