By Nolan D. McCaskill
WASHINGTON, July 9 (Reuters) - Maine Democrats were scrambling on Thursday to find a path forward on a critical U.S. Senate race after progressive candidate Graham Platner dropped out following a string of controversies including an accusation this week of rape.
The seat in the rural northeastern state, currently held by Republican U.S. Senator Susan Collins, is seen as vital for the party's chances of taking control of the Senate in November's midterm elections.
Two Democratic candidates who came up short in their runs for the party's nomination for governor have already jumped into the newly reopened race, both laying claim to the populist mantle that gave the win to Platner, an oyster farmer and U.S. Marine Corps veteran.
Nirav Shah, a lawyer and epidemiologist, promised Mainers he would fight to reduce medical bills and make "billionaires and the biggest corporations finally pay their fair share."
"The past few days have been frustrating and downright maddening for all of us here," Shah said in a video message announcing his renewed candidacy on social media. "And now it's time to focus on the future."
And Troy Jackson, a logger, announced his candidacy on Wednesday night, promising to empower "a powerful movement of working class people."
Both candidates focused their attacks on Collins, an incumbent of nearly three decades, who is running for re-election.
Platner's rapid political rise collapsed over the past week as he faced an accusation of sexual assault. He has denied wrongdoing but said that he would drop out because that and other allegations had hurt his chances.
(Reporting by Nolan McCaskill in Washington and Jonathan Allen in New York; editing by Scott Malone and Nick Zieminski)
