Dems in Disarray: A Bernie-Backed House Candidate's Controversial Past Catches Up With Him

In recent months, we've learned a lot more about some of the Democrat congressional candidates, including information they'd rather voters not know. One that comes to mind is Graham Platner, a Maine Senate candidate backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and who is vying to challenge Sen. Susan Collins (R) in the fall election.

As we reported, Platner became enmeshed in a scandal of his own making in October, when a series of offensive posts he'd published on Reddit 10 or so years ago were unearthed, some of which included Platner boasting about being a communist and bashing law enforcement officers as "b**tards."

There was also an unhealthy dose of self-loathing towards rural white Americans and racially insensitive posts about how black people tip, as well as some sexual assault victim-shaming. Adding to all of that was the disturbing revelation that Platner sported a Nazi-themed tattoo on his chest. Platner claimed he did not know the meaning of the tattoo at the time he got it (2007). He has since covered it with something else.

Though there is another example of this on the Senate side, let's first turn to one on the House side who, surprise surprise, is also backed by Vermont's senior senator as well as the Congressional Progressive Caucus, whose Deputy Chair is Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN-05).

Utah state Sen. Nate Blouin (D), 36, is vying for the newly redrawn 1st Congressional District, which favors Democrats. According to local reports, Blouin's internal polling has him in second in the race, behind former Democrat Rep. Ben McAdams (UT-04).

Punchbowl News broke a story Wednesday morning about Blouin's troubling social media history. Like Platner, several posts of Blouin's were dug up on sites like Reddit - and suffice it to say they will not go over well with Utah's Mormon community (language/content warning):

I have some thoughts:

I don’t want to hear @NateForUtah guy complain about another @BasedMikeLee post again.

How many Tribune articles have we seen lecturing Republicans for social media posts? They protect their own. End their 501(c)(3) status. pic.twitter.com/p3iV27ZNQM
— Warshington (@warshington_dc) April 15, 2026

There were also these:

Blouin made a post praising a comedian who joked about a domestic violence incident between the artists Chris Brown and Rihanna. Blouin wrote the comedian “hit the nail on the head. pun intended.”
When a student athlete at Brigham Young University was charged with sexual battery, Blouin made light of the assault on LetsRun.com, writing: “good ol’ mormon kid. had to let out the pent up sexual frustration somehow.”
On that same thread, Blouin also lamented that people are “are too damn sensitive” and that “slapping girl’s a**es as you run by … shouldn’t land you in jail or anything by any means.”

Naturally, Blouin is proclaiming that he has matured a lot over the past ten years, that those posts do not reflect who he is today, and says his past comments "horrified" him:

My response to an article you may have seen today: There's no excuse for these posts -- they're vulgar, stupid, and reflect a version of me in my early twenties that I’m ashamed of and have thankfully evolved past. When a reporter sent me these posts, I was horrified to see my… pic.twitter.com/PFQ4cqBhOC
— Nate Blouin (@NateForUtah) April 15, 2026

Of note, the 1st Congressional District is "where the church’s headquarters are located."

Utahns who have been calling out Blouin for years are feeling vindicated over the reports, essentially saying "told ya so":

Nate Blouin finally got busted for being the total degenerate turd that he is.

We’ve been noting it on X for years. Our local media was never interested in doing any basic reporting about him.

“There’s no excuse for these posts — they’re vulgar, stupid, and reflect a… https://t.co/Ayzae82ugn pic.twitter.com/8fD9ZpXtoa
— NormieUtah (@NormieUtah) April 15, 2026

The calls from other candidates for Blouin to withdraw have already started. Salt Lake City Councilwoman Eva Lopez Chavez:

.@evaforutah calls on Blouin to withdraw from UT-01 race

“Recent findings raise serious concerns about Senator Blouin’s judgment, particularly on issues impacting women’s physical safety and the reality of sexual violence.” https://t.co/yFkeO39zsI
— Samuel Benson (@sambbenson) April 15, 2026

Will this blow Blouin's chances at the nomination?

It's hard to say, considering Democrats are in the midst of a volatile political climate where the more progressive wing of the party has demanded non-establishment "fighters" to hit back against President Trump, which is the type of candidate Blouin has tried to portray himself as being.

To that extent, Graham Platner is polling well ahead of his closest competitor, Schumer-backed Maine Gov. Janet Mills, despite the Nazi tattoo and Reddit controversies. And Abdul El-Sayed, the antisemitic Bernie-backed Senate candidate in Michigan who thinks Hasan Piker is a cool guy worth sitting down to break bread with, is currently in a three-way tie in his primary race.

Though Blouin has the signatures necessary to qualify for the June primary, the Utah Democrat Party will be holding its nominating convention in about 10 days, where things promise to get interesting.

Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.

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