Graham Platner said he intends to wait until Monday — the last possible day — to file paperwork to officially remove his name from the ballot for Maine’s U.S. Senate race.

It’s not clear why he’s waiting. After announcing his decision to leave the race to his staff and then the public Wednesday night, his campaign later confirmed that he wouldn’t submit the official paperwork until next week. The Department of the Secretary of State said that could be done with a simple email.

Axios first reported on Platner’s plans Thursday. The campaign did not answer questions about why he is waiting until closer to the 5 p.m. Monday deadline to exit the race.

But in a post to X, Platner political adviser Morris Katz confirmed that Platner would file the paperwork to drop out.

The secretary of state’s office said Thursday that it had not yet received a withdrawal notice from Platner, and noted the paperwork must be signed and submitted in writing.

Though new candidates are stepping forward to seek to replace Platner, the delay might cause a bit of anxiety among Democrats, who need him to drop out by Monday or they cannot legally replace him on the ballot, according to state law.

“He’s such a drama queen. Dragging it out for no reason,” said a Maine Democratic official who asked not to be named to give a candid assessment of the situation. But the official added that Democrats are “too busy to care right now.”

Shenna Bellows, the secretary of state who filed Thursday to replace Platner, said she wasn’t sweating the timing.

“I’m not concerned. Graham announced last night that he is withdrawing. I’m confident he will withdraw, which he must, and I’m confident that the party will unite because this movement was never about one person,” Bellows said. “It’s about the movement to fight for the working class to take on the billionaires and the massive corporations who are screwing this country and to hold Donald Trump accountable.”

The Sullivan oysterman and military veteran saw his upstart campaign to defeat Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, swiftly meet its downfall at the start of this week in one of the most stunning political developments in Maine history. On Monday, Politico published a story on a woman who said Platner sexually assaulted her in 2021.

Platner and his team called the accusation false, but it served as the last straw for most state and national Democrats, who quickly withdrew their support for the progressive nominee and called for him to end his campaign.

Maine Democrats are hurrying to sort out the details and process for a convention featuring about 600 delegates who will pick a nominee to replace Platner by the July 27 statutory deadline. An array of Democrats, including various figures who lost last month’s primaries for governor and the 2nd Congressional District, said they will seek to replace Platner on the ballot.

The Maine Democratic Party, which had frosty back-and-forth interactions with the Platner campaign this week, continues to hash out convention details. But county committees began revealing more details Thursday about their processes, with some scheduling caucuses to nominate delegates starting next weekend.

For example, Sagadahoc Democratic Committee Chair Richard Kessler said in a statement that county committees will meet and appoint delegates to a convention that will occur on or around July 25.