A Maine Democrat vying for a seat in the United States Senate said Wednesday he has covered up a tattoo on his chest after receiving fierce backlash over its resemblance to a Nazi symbol.
Graham Platner, an oyster farmer and first-time political candidate, got the tattoo back in 2007 during a night of drinking with fellow Marines in Croatia.
He claimed he chose a skull and crossbones off the wall at the tattoo parlor, unaware that it looked like the Totenkopf, which is German for “death’s head.” The symbol was primarily adopted by a notorious Nazi unit responsible for guarding concentration camps during World War II, according to the Anti-Defamation League.
Platner has maintained that he only realized the ink bore a striking resemblance to Nazi imagery after “hearing from reporters and DC insiders.” He said that he’d never been questioned about the tattoo’s connections to Nazi symbols in the nearly 20 years that he’s had it, including when he underwent physical exams mandated by the U.S. Army, which prohibits tattoos of identified hate symbols.
On Wednesday, Platner — who’s hoping to flip the Maine Senate seat held by Republican Susan Collins — confirmed he had the tattoo covered, though he didn’t provide details about his new ink. He said he made the decision due to limited options in the rural area where he lives, adding that it would have taken months to have it removed.
“Going to a tattoo removal place is going to take a while,” he said. “I wanted this thing off my body.”
Platner earlier this week acknowledged the tattoo on an episode of Pod Save America. In an effort to front-run opposition research, his campaign also shared a video of him dancing shirtless at his brother’s wedding, showing the skull and crossbones.
“I absolutely would not have gone through life having this on my chest if I knew [the tattoo resembled a Nazi symbol] — and to insinuate that I did is disgusting,” he told Politico.
NEW: Graham Platner reacts to recently resurfaced video of him singing shirtless at a wedding and an opposition research attack alleging he’s a “secret nazi.” Full interview out now on the Pod Save America YouTube. pic.twitter.com/r8GEePCPLP
— Pod Save America (@PodSaveAmerica) October 21, 2025
The controversy comes amid the recent discovery of Platner’s now-deleted online statements, some of which dismissed military sexual assaults, questioned Black patrons’ tipping habits and criticized police officers and rural Americans.
He has since apologized, saying he penned the posts after leaving the Army in 2012, when he was struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.
With News Wire Services
