As she runs for a sixth six-year term in the U.S. Senate in left-leaning Maine, Republican Sen. Susan Collins is now officially her party’s nominee in a crucial race that’s one of a handful across the country that will determine whether Republicans keep control of their slim Senate majority.

Collins can toss the “presumptive nominee” title after formally landing her party’s nomination on Tuesday by running unopposed in Maine’s Senate GOP primary.

As she fights for re-election, the 73-year-old Collins is once again a top target for Democrats as they aim to win back the Senate majority in this year’s midterms.

“I have been the No. 1 target of Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, not only in this campaign, but the last two campaigns as well. I’m always his No. 1 target,” Collins said in a recent Fox News Digital interview.

SIX MONTHS TILL MIDTERMS: THE TEN RACES THAT WILL DETERMINE THE SENATE’S MAJORITY

Facing Collins will be military veteran and oyster farmer Graham Platner, the all-but-certain Democratic nominee after two-term Gov. Janet Mills, who was backed by Schumer and the Democratic Party establishment, dropped out of the race earlier this spring after significantly trailing Platner in fundraising and polling.

While Collins has focused on her Senate agenda, and on Friday she received bipartisan praise after reaching a milestone by casting her 10,000th consecutive Senate vote, Platner has been playing defense amid multiple controversies, ranging from inflammatory online comments made on Reddit, a well-publicized and now covered-up tattoo on his chest that resembled a Nazi symbol, to new allegations last week from ex-girlfriends of a history of rape fantasies, heavy drinking and violent episodes.

Platner, who has acknowledged his battle with post-traumatic stress disorder from his four tours of duty in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, has said he’s “been open about what was a very dark period of my life where I struggled with undiagnosed PTSD, too often self-medicated with alcohol, and was a far from perfect boyfriend.”

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“I take responsibility for all of that, and wish I had been better. Any characterization beyond that is false, and I believe, politically motivated,” Platner added. “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.”

The candidate apologized for his controversial Reddit posts after they made headlines last fall soon after he launched his Senate campaign. Platner has said he got the skull and crossbones tattoo in 2007 while drinking with fellow Marines stationed in Croatia. He said that he covered up the tattoo with a new design after learning last year that it resembled a Nazi symbol. But new allegations raise questions about Platner’s timeline regarding knowledge of the tattoo.

‘HE HATED WOMEN’: EXPLOSIVE ABUSE, NEW NAZI TATTOO ALLEGATIONS FROM EXES ROCK PLATNER’S CAMPAIGN

Platner, who is supported by progressive champions Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, and Rep. Ro Khanna of California, is pushing an economically populist agenda as he takes aim at corporate influences and advocates for the working class.

Asked if Platner is too far to the left for voters in her northern New England state, Collins recently told Fox News Digital, “I believe that will be the conclusion of Maine voters. But, obviously, I don’t take anything for granted.”

Collins said that when it comes to her Democratic challenger’s growing political baggage, “Obviously, I’m going to be contrasting my record of achievement and accomplishments with Graham Platner’s approach.”

An outside political group aligned with the senator has already been blasting Platner, running ads spotlighting his multiple controversies.

Platner, who is running as an outsider, emphasizes that Collins is part of a “broken Washington” and “a generation of politicians who have failed us.”

He has described Collins’ moderate Republican image as a “charade,” highlights her support for some of President Donald Trump’s agenda and accuses her of being part of a political system that benefits the wealthy. 

“She and Republican politicians like her have prioritized the interests of billionaires and corporations over people,” he has charged.

Republicans — as the party currently in power in Washington, D.C. — were already up against traditional political headwinds that typically lead to a loss of congressional seats. Add to that the challenging climate fueled by persistent inflation, rising gas prices tied to what polls show is an unpopular war with Iran and Trump’s underwater approval ratings.

Asked how she can overcome the blame pointed at Republicans over the high cost of living, Collins recently told Fox News Digital she’s championed the low-income heating assistance program, which “helps low-income families and seniors stay warm during the cold winter months. I just recently made sure the final tranche of money was released because there is a lot of need in the state of Maine, and the cost of living is high here.”

Collins also emphasized her opposition to cuts “in food stamp benefits and in other programs that are designed for low-income families because I know how important they are.”

The latest public opinion polls point to a competitive contest between Collins and Platner.

But Collins has a history of defeating the Democrats’ efforts to oust her from the Senate.

Six years ago, she trailed Democratic challenger Sara Gideon, the then-Maine House speaker, but the senator ended up winning re-election by nearly nine points.

Pointing to the expected wave of attack ads targeting her, Collins said, “Fortunately, the people of Maine are smart, and they know lies and distortions when they see it.”

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One week after President Donald Trump’s endorsement winning streak in high-profile Republican primaries was snapped, the president’s backing of South Carolina Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette helped boost her bid to succeed term-limited GOP Gov. Henry McMaster.

Evette, who was endorsed by Trump a week and a half before Tuesday’s primary, will advance to a runoff election in two weeks, The Associated Press reports. The big question is which one of the other major gubernatorial contenders will join Evette. The GOP field includes South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, nationally known Rep. Nancy Mace, Rep. Ralph Norman and multimillionaire businessman Rom Reddy.

Since no candidate was expected to top 50% of the primary vote and land a majority, the top two finishers will advance to the June 23 Republican runoff. And the winner of the runoff will be considered the clear favorite in the general election in the solidly red southeastern state.

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While he wasn’t on the ballot, Trump’s immense clout over the GOP is facing another test in South Carolina.

The brute force of the president’s endorsement power has been on display in GOP primaries over the past month, with his candidates ousting incumbents he targeted in showdowns in Indiana, Louisiana, Kentucky and Texas that grabbed plenty of national attention.

But his 11th hour endorsement of Republican Rep. Randy Feenstra of Iowa — which came on the same day he also backed Evette — in the race to succeed retiring GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds wasn’t enough to muscle the three-term congressman to victory.

Feenstra was narrowly edged by Zach Lahn, a businessman, farmer and former political strategist who was backed by the political wings of MAHA — the acronym for the Make America Healthy Again movement aligned with Trump Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — and Turning Point USA, the powerful conservative organization co-founded by the late Charlie Kirk.

TRUMP-ENDORSED FEENSTRA CONCEDES TO MAHA-BACKED LAHN IN GOP GOVERNOR PRIMARY UPSET

In the South Carolina GOP gubernatorial primary, the major contenders had long been highlighting their support for Trump and his agenda, in hopes of landing his support.

Trump, after staying neutral for months, endorsed Evette, praising her as an “America First Patriot” and a “WINNER” in his announcement.

After Trump backed Evette, Mace said that her very vocal push last year for the Justice Department to release the files related to its probe into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein contributed to the president’s backing of her rival.

“I know I put the likelihood of an endorsement on the line when I demanded transparency on the Epstein files,” the lawmaker wrote. “I demanded it because you deserved the truth – ALL OF IT,” Mace emphasized in a post on X.

Trump, in a social media post endorsing Evette, also said he expected Evette to choose Henry McMaster Jr., the governor’s son, as her running mate for lieutenant governor.

The comment by the president led to blowback in South Carolina political circles and speculation that McMaster, who succeeded then-Gov. Nikki Haley when she stepped down to serve as U.N. ambassador during Trump’s first term and who is in his 10th year as governor, was trying to give his son a political boost.

But McMaster denied any deal or pressure, and Evette has said she wouldn’t name any running mate until after the primary is over.

And on Friday, the younger McMaster took his name out of contention, saying it was “incredibly humbling” to be mentioned as a possible lieutenant governor candidate, but that “now is simply not the right time.”

The winner of the Republican gubernatorial nomination will be considered the clear favorite in November’s general election in South Carolina.

State Rep. Jermaine Johnson, trial attorney and 2010 gubernatorial candidate William Mullins McLeod Jr., and businessman Billy Webster, who served as chief of staff to then-Democratic Gov. Richard Riley, are running for their party’s nomination.

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Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., squeaked out a win Tuesday night in a crowded primary race for the Republican nomination in the Palmetto State. 

Though there were six candidates, the contest truly fell between Graham and businessman Mark Lynch. Their primary battle again brought forth the ongoing feud within the GOP, pitting Trump-aligned candidates against the edges of the president’s own MAGA movement. 

Graham is running for a fifth term in the upper chamber and is fresh off successfully advancing the GOP’s $70 billion immigration enforcement package. He’s now headed to the general election in November, where he’ll face off against Dr. Annie Andrews, a pediatrician, who survived a three-way primary contest in South Carolina on Tuesday.

TRUMP ENDORSES SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM FOR RE-ELECTION: ‘HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN’

He is also one of President Donald Trump’s most ardent allies in the Senate and was endorsed by the president early last year.

Meanwhile, Lynch was recently endorsed by Trump’s former National Counterterrorism Center director, Joe Kent.

“He is the America First candidate,” Kent said in an endorsement video on X. “He’s gonna keep us out of all these foreign wars, and he is the best postured right now to get the warhawk neocon Lindsey Graham out of office.”

TRUMP SCORES VICTORY DESPITE GROWING GOP DIVIDE AFTER SENATE PASSES $70B ICE, BORDER PATROL FUNDING PACKAGE

Lynch also called for “more MTGs, Gaetzes and Massies” in Congress, referring to former Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Matt Gaetz and one of Trump’s biggest critics in the GOP, Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky.

Both Greene and Massie have evolved into some of the most vocal critics of Trump and the administration. Massie, however, was felled last month in a hotly-contested primary race in Kentucky by a Trump-backed candidate. 

FOUR SENATE REPUBLICANS AGAIN UNITE WITH DEMS TO BLOCK TRUMP’S SAVE AMERICA ACT

That alignment saw Trump go after Lynch on Truth Social, where he called on Palmetto State voters to buck him for Graham.

“Senator Lindsey Graham is doing a fantastic job,” Trump said. “He is running against a LUNATIC named Mark Lynch, who supports perhaps the Worst Congressman in the History of our Country, Thomas Massie, of the Great Commonwealth of Kentucky.” 

“I don’t have to go into great detail, but needless to say, Mark Lynch would be a DISASTER for the Republican Party, and Lindsey Graham just, GETS THE JOB DONE,” he continued. “VOTE FOR LINDSEY ALL THE WAY. MAGA!”

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BLUE HILL, Maine — He’s been facing one of the roughest stretches of his bid for the U.S. Senate, but Graham Platner on Tuesday captured the Democratic Party’s Senate nomination.

Platner, a military combat veteran and oyster farmer who is backed by progressive champions Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, and Rep. Ro Khanna of California, defeated two longshot rivals in Maine’s Democratic Senate primary, the Associated Press reports.

The embattled Platner, who is facing numerous controversies, will now challenge moderate Republican Sen. Susan Collins, who was unopposed for the GOP nomination, in left-leaning Maine in this year’s midterm elections. The race is one of a handful across the country that will determine whether the GOP keeps control of its slim Senate majority.

Platner, who advocates an economically populist agenda as he takes aim at corporate influences and advocates for the working class, also topped two-term Democratic Gov. Janet Mills in the primary. The governor’s name remained on the ballot even though Mills, who had been backed by longtime Democratic Senate Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer and the Senate Democrats’ campaign arm, suspended her bid earlier this spring after significantly trailing Platner in fundraising and polling.

THE TEN RACES THAT WILL DETERMINE THE SENATE’S MAJORITY

“We’re going to win in November and we’re going to take power back for the people in this country,” Platner predicted Sunday night, at his final rally ahead of the primary.

Platner has been playing defense the past month, amid multiple controversies. They include inflammatory online comments made on Reddit, a well-publicized and now covered-up tattoo on his chest that resembled a Nazi symbol, recent reports that he exchanged sexually explicit messages with several women while married, and new allegations last week from ex-girlfriends of a history of rape fantasies, heavy drinking and violent episodes. Platner has called the latest allegations of violence untrue.

On Monday, a day before the primary election, a former high-level staffer from the Planter campaign wrote in the Washington Post that Platner “is not someone who would be good for Maine or for the country.”

While the mounting controversies triggered some Democrats in the nation’s capital to question whether Platner was damaged goods, the candidate this past weekend thanked Maine voters for continuing to support him.

“When hurtful things I said on the internet a decade ago came out into the public as I shared my personal journey through PTSD and darkness of recovery and accountability and growth. Maine had my back,” Platner said at a rally Friday not far from his hometown in Down East Maine. “Now, as every single piece of that past and journey gets dug up, litigated, and weaponized, you have my back. And when politically motivated, serious and false accusations are made against me. Maine, you have my back.”

PLATNER TO SUPPORTERS: ‘MAINE, YOU HAVE MY BACK’

Platner, who has acknowledged his battle with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) from his three tours of duty in the war in Iraq with the Marines and one tour with the Army National Guard in Afghanistan, apologized for his controversial Reddit posts after some of them made headlines last fall soon after he launched his Senate campaign.

And Platner has said he got the skull and crossbones tattoo in 2007 while drinking with fellow Marines stationed in Croatia. He said that he covered up the tattoo with a new design after learning last year that it resembled a Nazi symbol. But new allegations from an ex-girlfriend raise questions about Platner’s timeline regarding knowledge of the tattoo.

Khanna, who organized Friday’s rally with Platner, was asked by Fox News Digital whether he’s concerned if the current allegations, and any potential future ones, could sink Platner’s campaign and hurt Democrats’ hopes of winning back the Senate.

“I’m more concerned about making it clear that we’re opposed to misogyny, those relationships were toxic and volatile, there’s no excuse for that,” Khanna said. “I talked to Graham and he says he was at a very dark period, he had come back from two tours of duty in Iraq as an infantryman seeing violence and death. That doesn’t excuse it.”

DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB

But Khanna added that Platner said “he really grew as a person when he came back to Maine and he was an oyster farmer and he found peace and he is ashamed of that period. To me that suggests someone taking accountability and improving their lives and we need that redemption in this country. And I agree with a lot of his economic policies, that we should be taxing the billionaires, we should be focusing on the working class.”

Maine voters Fox News reporters spoke with ahead of the rally were divided on whether Platner’s controversies would impact their opinions of the candidate.

Jeff from Waterboro, Maine said “it’s not a good situation” as he pointed to Platner. “I think it’s somebody who shouldn’t be in the mix. I am a conservative, but he’s just got so much damage, if the Democrats want to have a winner, they’re going to have to find somebody else. He’s not the guy. It’s just too much.”

Ellen from Acton, Maine, who said she is a registered Republican, said, “Is he a perfect person? Heck no.”

But she added, “I think he will go in and do a good job.”

Collins, returning to Maine on Friday after a busy week on Capitol Hill where she reached a milestone by casting her 10,000th consecutive vote in the Senate, was asked by reporters about the latest allegations facing Platner.

“The allegations in the latest story are troubling,” Collins responded. “And I believe that Graham Platner has a lot of questions to answer.”

SEE IT: DEM SENATORS DODGE ON BACKING PLATNER AS MAINE CANDIDATE’S SCANDAL CLOUDS FINAL DAYS BEFORE PRIMARY

Platner is facing plenty of incoming political fire from Republican groups. A super PAC aligned with Collins has been blasting Platner, running ads spotlighting his multiple controversies.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) charged that Platner is a “fraud.”

“He’s preaching about living a small but decent life growing up in Maine. The truth? Graham Platner is an elitist whose parents sent him to boarding school in Connecticut and bought him a house,” the NRSC wrote.

And the Republican National Committee (RNC) also targeted Platner.

“Graham Platner says his violent and erratic past is being ‘weaponized’ against him. Platner said he would rape someone to show his dominance and ‘rape was about power,’” the RNC research team wrote on X, pointing to the latest allegations against the candidate.

Despite the allegations and the incoming fire from the GOP, no Democratic politicians who have backed Platner have rescinded their endorsements.

“We need to unite and realize that the goal is defeating Susan Collins. And everyone from Schumer to Sanders is unified around that goal,” Khanna told Fox News Digital.

Platner has drawn large crowds and built a healthy fundraising war chest, and Democrats see Maine as a crucial pickup opportunity as they aim to win back the Senate majority.

But beating Collins won’t be easy. Six years ago, public opinion polls indicated the senator was headed to defeat, but Collins defied expectations and won re-election by topping then-Democratic state House Speaker Sara Gideon by nine points.

Collins, a moderate Republican who at times votes against President Donald Trump’s agenda, is running for a sixth six-year term in the Senate.

The senator voted to convict Trump in his second impeachment trial, in 2021 soon after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. And early last year she opposed the confirmation of now-Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

But she is also remembered for her 2018 vote to confirm Justice Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, which eventually helped the court’s conservative majority overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling which had legalized abortion nationwide.

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Polls have closed in Maine, which along with South Carolina, Nebraska and North Dakota are holding primary elections on Tuesday.

And the race grabbing the biggest national spotlight is in Maine, where it’s judgment day for Graham Platner, the embattled Democratic Senate candidate in left-leaning Maine who is aiming to oust longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a crucial race that’s among a handful that will determine if the GOP holds its slim Senate majority in the midterm elections.

Platner, an oyster farmer and military combat veteran who is backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and other top progressive champions, is facing a slew of controversies, which could make his expected Democratic primary victory in Maine much more interesting than originally expected.

Meanwhile, one week after President Donald Trump’s endorsement-winning streak in high-profile Republican primaries was snapped, the president’s immense clout over his party is facing another key test in South Carolina’s GOP gubernatorial and Senate nomination races.

PLATNER TO SUPPORTERS: ‘MAINE, YOU HAVE MY BACK’

Platner has been playing defense for the past month, amid mounting controversy. It includes inflammatory online comments made on Reddit, a well-publicized and now covered-up tattoo on his chest that resembled a Nazi symbol, recent reports that he exchanged sexually explicit messages with several women while married and new allegations last week from ex-girlfriends of a history of rape fantasies, heavy drinking and violent episodes. Platner has called the latest allegations of violence untrue.

The negative headlines have triggered some Democrats in the nation’s capital to question whether Platner was damaged goods. The candidate this past weekend thanked Maine voters for continuing to support him.

“When hurtful things I said on the internet a decade ago came out into the public, as I shared my personal journey through PTSD and darkness of recovery and accountability and growth, Maine had my back,” Platner said at a rally Friday not far from his hometown in Down East, Maine.

“Now, as every single piece of that past and journey gets dug up, litigated, and weaponized, you have my back. And when politically motivated, serious and false accusations are made against me. Maine, you have my back.”

SEE IT: MAINE VOTERS SOUND OFF ON PLATNER CONTROVERSIES

Platner, who has acknowledged his battle with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) from his three tours of duty in the war in Iraq with the Marines and one tour with the Army National Guard in Afghanistan, apologized for his controversial Reddit posts after they made headlines last fall soon after he launched his Senate campaign.

And Platner has said he got the skull and crossbones tattoo in 2007 while drinking with fellow Marines stationed in Croatia. He added that he covered up the tattoo with a new design after learning last year that it resembled a Nazi symbol. But new allegations from an ex-girlfriend raise questions about Platner’s timeline regarding knowledge of the tattoo.

Rep. Ro Khanna, the progressive leader from California who organized Friday’s rally with Platner, was asked by Fox News Digital whether he’s concerned if the current allegations, and any potential future ones, could sink Platner’s campaign and hurt Democrats’ hopes of winning back the Senate.

“I’m more concerned about making it clear that we’re opposed to misogyny, those relationships were toxic and volatile, there’s no excuse for that,” Khanna said. “I talked to Graham, and he says he was at a very dark period, he had come back from two tours of duty in Iraq as an infantryman seeing violence and death. That doesn’t excuse it.”

SEE IT: DEM SENATORS DODGE ON BACKING PLATNER AS MAINE CANDIDATE’S SCANDAL CLOUDS FINAL DAYS BEFORE PRIMARY

But Khanna noted that Platner said “he really grew as a person when he came back to Maine, and he was an oyster farmer, and he found peace, and he is ashamed of that period. To me, that suggests someone taking accountability and improving their lives, and we need that redemption in this country. And I agree with a lot of his economic policies, that we should be taxing the billionaires, we should be focusing on the working class.”

Platner has been considered the all-but-certain Democratic nominee after two-term Gov. Janet Mills, who was backed by longtime Senate Democratic Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer and the Democratic Party establishment, dropped out of the race earlier this spring after significantly trailing Platner in fundraising and polling.

He’s facing two long-shot rivals for the nomination in Tuesday’s primary, but Mills’ name remains on the ballot, which she highlighted in a recent interview. A source in Mills’ wider political orbit confirmed to Fox News last week that the governor was receiving calls urging her to get back in the race amid Platner’s controversies. But there’s no active campaign effort on behalf of Mills.

Maine voters Fox News reporters spoke with ahead of the rally were divided on whether Platner’s controversies would impact their opinions of the candidate and whether the allegations would weaken his ability to defeat Collins.

Collins, returning to Maine on Friday after a busy week on Capitol Hill where she reached a milestone by casting her 10,000th consecutive vote in the Senate, was asked by reporters about the latest allegations facing Platner.

“The allegations in the latest story are troubling,” Collins responded. “And I believe that Graham Platner has a lot of questions to answer.”

THE TEN RACES THAT WILL DETERMINE THE SENATE’S MAJORITY

Platner is facing plenty of incoming political fire from Republican groups. A super PAC aligned with Collins has been blasting Platner, running ads spotlighting his multiple controversies.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) charged that Platner is a “fraud.”

“He’s preaching about living a small but decent life growing up in Maine. The truth? Graham Platner is an elitist whose parents sent him to boarding school in Connecticut and bought him a house,” the NRSC wrote.

And the Republican National Committee (RNC) also targeted Platner.

“Graham Platner says his violent and erratic past is being “weaponized” against him. Platner said he would rape someone to show his dominance and “rape was about power,” the RNC research team wrote on X, pointing to the latest allegations against the candidate.

Despite the allegations and the incoming fire from the GOP, no Democratic politicians who have backed Platner have rescinded their endorsements.

“We need to unite and realize that the goal is defeating Susan Collins. And everyone from Schumer to Sanders is unified around that goal,” Khanna told Fox News Digital.

Platner has drawn large crowds and built a healthy fundraising war chest, and Democrats see Maine as a crucial pickup opportunity as they aim to win back the Senate majority.

But beating Collins, a moderate who is running for a sixth six-year term in the Senate and has a history of voting against President Donald Trump’s agenda, won’t be easy. Six years ago, public opinion polls indicated the senator was headed to defeat, but Collins defied expectations and won re-election by topping then-Democratic state House Speaker Sara Gideon by nine points.

DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB

There’s a crowded and competitive field of Democrats running for their party’s gubernatorial nomination in the race to succeed the term-limited Mills. On the Republican side, Bobby Charles — former federal investigator — leads eight other candidates, including Jonathan Bush, nephew of the late President George H.W. Bush.

Also in the spotlight, the Democratic primary in the state’s 2nd Congressional District, in the race to replace moderate Democratic Rep. Jared Golden, who announced last year that he would not seek re-election due to political polarization.

Republicans, who are aiming to hold their razor-thin majority in the House, view the mostly rural district which Trump carried in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections, as a top pickup opportunity. Former two-term Republican Gov. Paul LePage is uncontested for the GOP nomination.

In South Carolina, Trump’s endorsement is in the spotlight.

The president, a week and a half ago, handed Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette 11th-hour support as she seeks to succeed a top Trump ally, term-limited Republican Gov. Henry McMaster.

Evette is facing off in the GOP primary against a handful of top rivals. They are longtime South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, nationally known Rep. Nancy Mace, Rep. Ralph Norman and multimillionaire businessman Rom Reddy.

Since no candidate was expected to top 50% of the primary vote and land a majority, the top two finishers will advance to the June 23 Republican runoff.

The brute force of the president’s endorsement power has been on display in GOP primaries over the past month, with his candidates ousting incumbents he targeted in showdowns in Indiana, Louisiana, Kentucky and Texas that grabbed plenty of national attention.

But his last-minute endorsement of Republican Rep. Randy Feenstra of Iowa — which came on the same day he also backed Evette — in the race to succeed retiring GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds wasn’t enough to muscle the three-term congressman to victory.

Feenstra was narrowly edged by Zach Lahn, a businessman, farmer and former political strategist who was backed by the political wings of MAHA — the acronym for the Make America Healthy Again movement aligned with Trump Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — and Turning Point USA, the powerful conservative organization co-founded by the late Charlie Kirk.

In the South Carolina GOP gubernatorial primary, the major contenders had long been highlighting their support for Trump and his agenda, in hopes of landing his support.

Trump, after staying neutral for months, endorsed Evette, praising her as an “America First Patriot” and a “WINNER” in his announcement.

After Trump backed Evette, Mace said that her very vocal push last year for the Justice Department to release the files related to its probe into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein contributed to the president’s backing of her rival.

“I know I put the likelihood of an endorsement on the line when I demanded transparency on the Epstein files,” the lawmaker wrote. “I demanded it because you deserved the truth — ALL OF IT,” Mace emphasized in a post on X.

Trump, in a social media post endorsing Evette, also said he expected Evette to choose Henry McMaster Jr., the governor’s son, as her running mate for lieutenant governor.

The comment by the president led to blowback in South Carolina political circles and speculation that McMaster, who succeeded then-Gov. Nikki Haley when she stepped down to serve as U.N. ambassador during Trump’s first term and who is in his 10th year as governor, was trying to give his son a political boost.

But McMaster denied any deal or pressure, and Evette has said she wouldn’t name any running mate until after the primary is over.

And on Friday, the younger McMaster took his name out of contention, saying it was “incredibly humbling” to be mentioned as a possible lieutenant governor candidate, but that “now is simply not the right time.”

The winner of the Republican gubernatorial nomination will be considered the clear favorite in November’s general election in South Carolina.

State Rep. Jermaine Johnson, trial attorney and 2010 gubernatorial candidate William Mullins McLeod Jr., and businessman Billy Webster, who served as chief of staff to then-Democratic Gov. Richard Riley, are running for their party’s nomination.

Longtime Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham is the clear favorite in the Republican Senate primary, but is facing a tougher-than-expected challenge from South Carolina businessman Mark Lynch in a race that has devolved into mudslinging.

In Nevada, incumbent Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo is expected to fend off a handful of primary challengers as he seeks re-election. On the Democratic side, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford is the clear favorite over Washoe County Commissioner Alexis Hill.

And in solidly red North Dakota, there is a competitive GOP house primary for the state’s at-large district.

Fox News Digital’s Alexis McAdams, Sally Persons, Jessica Sonkin and Luke Trevisan contributed to this report.

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Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., broke with fellow Democrats on Tuesday and refused to defend embattled Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner.

Platner has emerged as one of the party’s fastest-rising political figures, attracting national attention for his populist message and outsider image as he seeks to flip a Republican-held seat.

But his rise has been accompanied by mounting scrutiny over his past conduct, including sexually explicit online messages, offensive social media posts, a Nazi-linked tattoo controversy and turmoil within his campaign.

THE GROWING LIST OF CONTROVERSIES THREATENING DEMOCRAT GRAHAM PLATNER’S MAINE SENATE BID

Platner, a Marine veteran and oyster farmer, has defended himself against the criticism and continues to enjoy support from prominent Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., however, made clear he is not among those coming to Platner’s defense.

“I really would encourage ‘P Hustle’ to answer basic questions,” Fetterman told Fox News Digital, using Platner’s former online alias used on Reddit and Kik accounts.

2026 MIDTERMS: PRIMARIES, KEY RACES AND ELECTION RESULTS

Fetterman pointed to Platner’s long-running presence on Kik, a messaging app that has faced scrutiny over the years because of its anonymous features and safety concerns, as well as explicit photos Platner allegedly shared online.

“I mean he was dropping dick pics for a decade and he was on Kik for a decade, and you have that picture of him in the towel that he posted up there,” Fetterman said.

Fetterman went on to question whether Platner had adequate safeguards in place while using Kik, arguing the candidate has yet to fully address concerns about his activity on the messaging app.

“What was your safeguards to make sure that you weren’t interacting with underage people? Everyone was adults. So he refuses to answer those questions and if that’s the kind of people that Maine wants to vote for that’s entirely up to them, but “P Hustle” has a lot of serious questions and concerns about his judgment, but also his ethics too,” Fetterman said.

PLATNER CONTROVERSIES FUEL SPECULATION ABOUT LITTLE-KNOWN MAINE BALLOT REPLACEMENT PROVISION

When asked about allegations from former partners, Fetterman suggested the controversies surrounding Platner have become so numerous that it’s hard to keep track of them all.

“You know, candidates have baggage. In his case, he is baggage that incidentally might be a candidate,” he said.

The Democrat said Platner’s mounting controversies leave him with little to defend.

“I’ll be the one Democrat to refuse to defend that mess,” Fetterman added.

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A top Jewish Democrat and member of the House Intelligence Committee called for Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner to exit the race, adding that if the scandal-plagued oyster farmer were running in New Jersey, he would be “buried under the Meadowlands.”

Rep. Josh Gottheimer, the subject of a recent profile that compared him to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and said he wants to be a “bulwark” against Democrats’ newfound leftist impulses, suggested there is no room for Platner on the party’s midterm ticket.

When asked by CNN if his aversion to Platner should be read as a recommendation that Democrats instead vote for moderate Republican Sen. Susan Collins, Gottheimer offered another off-ramp.

“No, what I would suggest is that Graham Platner get off if he wins today, which I assume he will because there’s no one actively campaigning against him, that he get off the ballot and let another Democrat step in,” Gottheimer said.

SEE IT: MAINE VOTERS SOUND OFF ON PLATNER’S DIVISIVE CAMPAIGN AS CRUCIAL PRIMARY NEARS: ‘HE’S A DISGRACE’

Platner is the frontrunner in Tuesday’s primary, as Gov. Janet Mills suspended her campaign and other candidates, including Bangor’s David Costello, have failed to gain traction.

“If this were Jersey and you had a candidate who abused women, obviously has a Nazi tattoo that — now it’s clear that he knew was a Nazi tattoo: not to mention many of his other lies and his comments and extremist comments; pro Hamas — a terrorist organization — other things of that nature. He should get off the ballot.”

Gottheimer, who represents Bergen County’s deep-blue New York City suburbs and the rural ruby-red Skylands of the state’s northwest, said that if Platner tried to run in the Garden State, “we’d throw him off the ballot or bury him under the Meadowlands.”

PLATNER CONTROVERSIES FUEL SPECULATION ABOUT LITTLE-KNOWN MAINE BALLOT REPLACEMENT PROVISION

Former Teamsters President James Hoffa Sr. was also purportedly buried beneath Giants Stadium after his disappearance decades ago.

Gottheimer said Platner should leave the ballot when he wins Tuesday, and let someone more “qualified” replace him.

He said separately that socialists should not be considered true members of the Democratic Party no matter their cataloged affiliation, and that the hard left wing is not where the mainstream of the U.S. is.

“I think it’s really important that we speak out when we see some of these issues that are a challenge,” he said, referring again to Platner.

He said he doesn’t believe Platner will be the ultimate contender for the Democrats against Collins by November.

He alluded to Mills’ statement that her campaign is not over, but only suspended.

FORMER PRIMARY RIVAL RESURFACES TO CHALLENGE SCANDAL-PLAGUED GRAHAM PLATNER IN MAINE SENATE RACE

“Hopefully today you’ll see Janet Mills, even though she is the governor, left the race, her name is still on the ballot. We’ll see how well she does. And I think that’s going to be a sign of the frustration,” he said, while questioning how female voters could support someone facing allegations of violence against women.

He also appeared to blame President Donald Trump for the New York Knicks’ narrow loss to the San Antonio Spurs at home on Monday.

The president was loudly booed by the largely liberal fan base but at the same time was welcomed into Madison Square Garden by team owner and Republican donor James Dolan and some faint “U-S-A” chants could be heard under the rancor on the ABC broadcast.

“[Trump] brought in some bad mojo into the Garden last night and p—ed off a lot of people — but don’t worry,” he said of the Knicks’ chances in the finals overall.

While Gottheimer joins Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman in ridiculing Platner, he retains support from 1992 Clinton campaign architect James Carville, who said on his podcast that, as a Louisianan, he understands oyster farming is “hard a—work” and that Platner’s apparent PTSD is something voters should better understand.

“Maybe we need a combat veteran right on that Senate floor who is [expletive] up, who every time these [expletives] go to vote for another war … Maybe they need to look at this guy before they start sending young people off to fight wars and see what the consequence of it is,” he said, according to RCP.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Platner campaign for comment.

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Polls have closed in South Carolina, which along with Maine, Nebraska and North Dakota are holding primary elections on Tuesday.

One week after President Donald Trump’s endorsement-winning streak in high-profile Republican primaries was snapped, the president’s immense clout over his party is facing another key test in South Carolina’s GOP gubernatorial and Senate nomination races.

But the race grabbing the biggest national spotlight is in Maine, where it’s judgment day for Graham Platner, the embattled Democratic Senate candidate in left-leaning Maine who is aiming to oust longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a crucial race that’s among a handful that will determine if the GOP holds its slim Senate majority in the midterm elections.

Platner, an oyster farmer and military combat veteran who is backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and other top progressive champions, is facing a slew of controversies, which could make his expected Democratic primary victory in Maine much more interesting than originally expected.

PLATNER TO SUPPORTERS: ‘MAINE, YOU HAVE MY BACK’

Platner has been playing defense for the past month, amid mounting controversy. It includes inflammatory online comments made on Reddit, a well-publicized and now covered-up tattoo on his chest that resembled a Nazi symbol, recent reports that he exchanged sexually explicit messages with several women while married and new allegations last week from ex-girlfriends of a history of rape fantasies, heavy drinking and violent episodes. Platner has called the latest allegations of violence untrue.

The negative headlines have triggered some Democrats in the nation’s capital to question whether Platner was damaged goods. The candidate this past weekend thanked Maine voters for continuing to support him.

“When hurtful things I said on the internet a decade ago came out into the public, as I shared my personal journey through PTSD and darkness of recovery and accountability and growth, Maine had my back,” Platner said at a rally Friday not far from his hometown in Down East, Maine.

“Now, as every single piece of that past and journey gets dug up, litigated, and weaponized, you have my back. And when politically motivated, serious and false accusations are made against me. Maine, you have my back.”

SEE IT: MAINE VOTERS SOUND OFF ON PLATNER CONTROVERSIES

Platner, who has acknowledged his battle with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) from his three tours of duty in the war in Iraq with the Marines and one tour with the Army National Guard in Afghanistan, apologized for his controversial Reddit posts after they made headlines last fall soon after he launched his Senate campaign.

And Platner has said he got the skull and crossbones tattoo in 2007 while drinking with fellow Marines stationed in Croatia. He added that he covered up the tattoo with a new design after learning last year that it resembled a Nazi symbol. But new allegations from an ex-girlfriend raise questions about Platner’s timeline regarding knowledge of the tattoo.

Rep. Ro Khanna, the progressive leader from California who organized Friday’s rally with Platner, was asked by Fox News Digital whether he’s concerned if the current allegations, and any potential future ones, could sink Platner’s campaign and hurt Democrats’ hopes of winning back the Senate.

“I’m more concerned about making it clear that we’re opposed to misogyny, those relationships were toxic and volatile, there’s no excuse for that,” Khanna said. “I talked to Graham, and he says he was at a very dark period, he had come back from two tours of duty in Iraq as an infantryman seeing violence and death. That doesn’t excuse it.”

SEE IT: DEM SENATORS DODGE ON BACKING PLATNER AS MAINE CANDIDATE’S SCANDAL CLOUDS FINAL DAYS BEFORE PRIMARY

But Khanna noted that Platner said “he really grew as a person when he came back to Maine, and he was an oyster farmer, and he found peace, and he is ashamed of that period. To me, that suggests someone taking accountability and improving their lives, and we need that redemption in this country. And I agree with a lot of his economic policies, that we should be taxing the billionaires, we should be focusing on the working class.”

Platner has been considered the all-but-certain Democratic nominee after two-term Gov. Janet Mills, who was backed by longtime Senate Democratic Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer and the Democratic Party establishment, dropped out of the race earlier this spring after significantly trailing Platner in fundraising and polling.

He’s facing two long-shot rivals for the nomination in Tuesday’s primary, but Mills’ name remains on the ballot, which she highlighted in a recent interview. A source in Mills’ wider political orbit confirmed to Fox News last week that the governor was receiving calls urging her to get back in the race amid Platner’s controversies. But there’s no active campaign effort on behalf of Mills.

Maine voters Fox News reporters spoke with ahead of the rally were divided on whether Platner’s controversies would impact their opinions of the candidate and whether the allegations would weaken his ability to defeat Collins.

Collins, returning to Maine on Friday after a busy week on Capitol Hill where she reached a milestone by casting her 10,000th consecutive vote in the Senate, was asked by reporters about the latest allegations facing Platner.

“The allegations in the latest story are troubling,” Collins responded. “And I believe that Graham Platner has a lot of questions to answer.”

THE TEN RACES THAT WILL DETERMINE THE SENATE’S MAJORITY

Platner is facing plenty of incoming political fire from Republican groups. A super PAC aligned with Collins has been blasting Platner, running ads spotlighting his multiple controversies.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) charged that Platner is a “fraud.”

“He’s preaching about living a small but decent life growing up in Maine. The truth? Graham Platner is an elitist whose parents sent him to boarding school in Connecticut and bought him a house,” the NRSC wrote.

And the Republican National Committee (RNC) also targeted Platner.

“Graham Platner says his violent and erratic past is being “weaponized” against him. Platner said he would rape someone to show his dominance and “rape was about power,” the RNC research team wrote on X, pointing to the latest allegations against the candidate.

Despite the allegations and the incoming fire from the GOP, no Democratic politicians who have backed Platner have rescinded their endorsements.

“We need to unite and realize that the goal is defeating Susan Collins. And everyone from Schumer to Sanders is unified around that goal,” Khanna told Fox News Digital.

Platner has drawn large crowds and built a healthy fundraising war chest, and Democrats see Maine as a crucial pickup opportunity as they aim to win back the Senate majority.

But beating Collins, a moderate who is running for a sixth six-year term in the Senate and has a history of voting against President Donald Trump’s agenda, won’t be easy. Six years ago, public opinion polls indicated the senator was headed to defeat, but Collins defied expectations and won re-election by topping then-Democratic state House Speaker Sara Gideon by nine points.

DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB

There’s a crowded and competitive field of Democrats running for their party’s gubernatorial nomination in the race to succeed the term-limited Mills. On the Republican side, Bobby Charles — former federal investigator — leads eight other candidates, including Jonathan Bush, nephew of the late President George H.W. Bush.

Also in the spotlight, the Democratic primary in the state’s 2nd Congressional District, in the race to replace moderate Democratic Rep. Jared Golden, who announced last year that he would not seek re-election due to political polarization.

Republicans, who are aiming to hold their razor-thin majority in the House, view the mostly rural district which Trump carried in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections, as a top pickup opportunity. Former two-term Republican Gov. Paul LePage is uncontested for the GOP nomination.

In South Carolina, Trump’s endorsement is in the spotlight.

The president, a week and a half ago, handed Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette 11th-hour support as she seeks to succeed a top Trump ally, term-limited Republican Gov. Henry McMaster.

Evette is facing off in the GOP primary against a handful of top rivals. They are longtime South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, nationally known Rep. Nancy Mace, Rep. Ralph Norman and multimillionaire businessman Rom Reddy.

Since no candidate was expected to top 50% of the primary vote and land a majority, the top two finishers will advance to the June 23 Republican runoff.

The brute force of the president’s endorsement power has been on display in GOP primaries over the past month, with his candidates ousting incumbents he targeted in showdowns in Indiana, Louisiana, Kentucky and Texas that grabbed plenty of national attention.

But his last-minute endorsement of Republican Rep. Randy Feenstra of Iowa — which came on the same day he also backed Evette — in the race to succeed retiring GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds wasn’t enough to muscle the three-term congressman to victory.

Feenstra was narrowly edged by Zach Lahn, a businessman, farmer and former political strategist who was backed by the political wings of MAHA — the acronym for the Make America Healthy Again movement aligned with Trump Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — and Turning Point USA, the powerful conservative organization co-founded by the late Charlie Kirk.

In the South Carolina GOP gubernatorial primary, the major contenders had long been highlighting their support for Trump and his agenda, in hopes of landing his support.

Trump, after staying neutral for months, endorsed Evette, praising her as an “America First Patriot” and a “WINNER” in his announcement.

After Trump backed Evette, Mace said that her very vocal push last year for the Justice Department to release the files related to its probe into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein contributed to the president’s backing of her rival.

“I know I put the likelihood of an endorsement on the line when I demanded transparency on the Epstein files,” the lawmaker wrote. “I demanded it because you deserved the truth — ALL OF IT,” Mace emphasized in a post on X.

Trump, in a social media post endorsing Evette, also said he expected Evette to choose Henry McMaster Jr., the governor’s son, as her running mate for lieutenant governor.

The comment by the president led to blowback in South Carolina political circles and speculation that McMaster, who succeeded then-Gov. Nikki Haley when she stepped down to serve as U.N. ambassador during Trump’s first term and who is in his 10th year as governor, was trying to give his son a political boost.

But McMaster denied any deal or pressure, and Evette has said she wouldn’t name any running mate until after the primary is over.

And on Friday, the younger McMaster took his name out of contention, saying it was “incredibly humbling” to be mentioned as a possible lieutenant governor candidate, but that “now is simply not the right time.”

The winner of the Republican gubernatorial nomination will be considered the clear favorite in November’s general election in South Carolina.

State Rep. Jermaine Johnson, trial attorney and 2010 gubernatorial candidate William Mullins McLeod Jr., and businessman Billy Webster, who served as chief of staff to then-Democratic Gov. Richard Riley, are running for their party’s nomination.

Longtime Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham is the clear favorite in the Republican Senate primary, but is facing a tougher-than-expected challenge from South Carolina businessman Mark Lynch in a race that has devolved into mudslinging.

In Nevada, incumbent Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo is expected to fend off a handful of primary challengers as he seeks re-election. On the Democratic side, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford is the clear favorite over Washoe County Commissioner Alexis Hill.

And in solidly red North Dakota, there is a competitive GOP house primary for the state’s at-large district.

Fox News Digital’s Alexis McAdams, Sally Persons, Jessica Sonkin and Luke Trevisan contributed to this report.

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BANGOR, Maine — Republican Sen. Susan Collins believes that Graham Platner, her likely Democratic challenger in November’s midterm elections, is too extreme for voters in her New England state.

But Platner, pushing an economically populist agenda as he takes aim at corporate influences and advocates for the working class, argues it is moderate Collins who is the “radical” one.

With the support of Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Rep. Ro Khanna of California, Platner is aiming to unseat the longtime Republican senator in left-leaning Maine.

The race is among a handful that could determine if the GOP holds onto its slim Senate majority in the midterm elections, and the oyster farmer has been forced onto defense in recent weeks amid mounting controversies and negative headlines.

IT’S JUDGMENT DAY FOR EMBATTLED DEMOCRAT GRAHAM PLATNER

While Collins has mostly kept quiet about Platner’s political baggage, she has weighed in on his agenda.

Among his many progressive policy stances, Platner, on his campaign website, urges “passing a constitutional amendment to ban billionaires buying elections!”

And he highlights that he’s “a strong supporter of a Medicare for All system” and that he “will support a path to citizenship and an end to the mass deportation machine.”

Asked if Platner is too far to the left for voters in her northern New England state, Collins responded in a Fox News Digital interview last month, “I believe that will be the conclusion of Maine voters. But, obviously, I don’t take anything for granted.”

But Platner challenges that it’s Collins who is too “radical.”

“My response is that, trying to bring down costs for working Mainers. Trying to make sure that our communities don’t get emptied out because housing has become unaffordable for young people. Trying to create a system in which we are not seeing our health care system utilized as a way of just screwing working people all for the benefit of a health care insurance CEO,” Platner responded in a Fox News Digital interview last month.

“I don’t think that’s radical at all,” he added, claiming: “I think, in fact, that what most Mainers agree is what we have to be doing.”

Rather, he claimed that “what’s radical is somebody like Susan Collins, who, for decades now, has made sure that we pass policies that are going to help corporations and billionaires to the detriment of working people, supporting over and over and over again, illegal and insane foreign wars.”

“She voted to send me to Iraq, and now she continues to vote to support the war in Iran,” Platner charged. “I’m sorry that I think is much more radical to the people of Maine than having a health care system that doesn’t collapse before our eyes.”

PLATNER TO SUPPORTERS: ‘MAINE, YOU HAVE MY BACK’

Despite his numerous controversies, Platner has drawn large crowds and built a healthy fundraising war chest.

Democrats see Maine as a crucial pickup opportunity in the 2026 midterms as they aim to win back the Senate majority in the fall.

But beating Collins, a moderate who is running for a sixth six-year term in the Senate and has a history of voting against President Donald Trump’s agenda, won’t be easy. Six years ago, public opinion polls indicated the senator was headed to defeat, but Collins defied expectations and won re-election by topping then-Democratic state House Speaker Sara Gideon by nine points.

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One week after President Donald Trump’s endorsement-winning streak in high-profile Republican primaries was snapped, the president’s immense clout over his party is facing another key test in South Carolina’s GOP gubernatorial nomination face-off.

A week and a half ago, the president handed Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette 11th-hour support as she seeks to succeed a top Trump ally, term-limited Republican Gov. Henry McMaster.

Evette is facing off in the GOP primary against a handful of top rivals. They are longtime South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, Reps. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman, and multimillionaire businessman Rom Reddy.

Since no candidate was expected to top 50% of the primary vote and land a majority, the top two finishers will advance to the June 23 Republican runoff.

DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB

The brute force of the president’s endorsement power has been on display in GOP primaries over the past month, with his candidates ousting incumbents he targeted in showdowns in Indiana, Louisiana, Kentucky and Texas that grabbed plenty of national attention.

But Trump’s last-minute endorsement of Republican Rep. Randy Feenstra of Iowa in the race to succeed retiring GOP Gov. Kim Reynolds — which came on the same day he also backed Evette — wasn’t enough to muscle the three-term congressman to victory.

Feenstra was narrowly edged out by Zach Lahn, a businessman, farmer and former political strategist who was backed by the political wings of MAHA — the acronym for the Make America Healthy Again movement aligned with Trump Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — and Turning Point USA, the powerful conservative organization co-founded by the late Charlie Kirk.

HEAD HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS LIVE UPDATES ON TUESDAY’S PRIMARIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY

In the South Carolina GOP gubernatorial primary, the major contenders had long been highlighting their support for Trump and his agenda in hopes of landing his support.

Trump, after staying neutral for months, endorsed Evette, praising her as an “America First Patriot” and a “WINNER” in his announcement.

The president also headlined a tele-rally for Evette on the eve of the primary.

Hours later, on the morning of the primary, Evette once again spotlighted the president’s backing of her campaign.

In a social media post, she wrote that Trump “needs a strong partner as Governor who will deliver on our conservative America First agenda. It’s why he gave me his ‘complete and total endorsement.’ Don’t let President Trump down. Get to the polls, bring your friends & family, and VOTE EVETTE!”

But Trump, in a social media post endorsing Evette, also said he expected Evette to choose Henry McMaster Jr., the governor’s son, as her running mate for lieutenant governor.

The comment by the president led to blowback in South Carolina political circles and speculation that McMaster, who succeeded then-Gov. Nikki Haley when she stepped down to serve as U.N. ambassador during Trump’s first term and who is in his 10th year as governor, was trying to give his son a political boost.

But McMaster denied any deal or pressure, and Evette has said she wouldn’t name any running mate until after the primary is over.

And on Friday, the younger McMaster took his name out of contention, saying it was “incredibly humbling” to be mentioned as a possible lieutenant governor candidate, but that “now is simply not the right time.”

Pointing to what he said was a smaller-than-expected bounce in the polls for Evette, longtime South Carolina political strategist Dave Wilson told Fox News Digital he thinks the Trump endorsement “backfired” because of the president’s push for the younger McMaster to join the Evette ticket.

“In South Carolina, we really don’t take it very well when Washington tries to tell us what to do,” Wilson emphasized.

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