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In a political climate where distrust of government is commonplace, scandals of political leaders have become worryingly customary. Global downfalls of presidents have caused plenty of public outrage and scrutiny; including President Nixon’s impeachment following the infamous Watergate scandal, the uncovering of Bill Clinton’s sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky and more recently Partygate – a series of government parties during Covid-19 held at 10 Downing Street, which led to Boris Johnson’s resignation as Prime Minister. This article explores the political and social consequences of political scandals, not just for individuals but for political parties, as well as proffering what can be done to reduce these debilitating scandals in the future. Politics is undoubtedly a constantly fluctuating phenomena, with public opinion and political popularity ever changing. Scandals of political leaders most directly have significant influence on the individuals’ reputations, a consequence which certainly affected Bill Clinton following the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal. The scandal involved former US president Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky, a white house intern. The pair had a sexual relationship which began in 1995 and ended in 1997, resulting in Clinton’s impeachment[1] after he denied any relationship to Lewinsky, infamously claiming ‘I did not have sexual relations with that woman’. As a result of the scandal, Clinton was supported by approximately 30% fewer Americans[2], with many feeling betrayed by a figure who should symbolise integrity, as well as feeling sceptical about other areas where Clinton may have been dishonest. As well as individual damages to reputation, the scandals of political leaders often affect their political parties. This has seemingly occurred in the United Kingdom following the Party gate scandal, which saw gatherings of conservative party and government staff during Covid 19, despite lockdown still being adhered to by the public. The subsequent public scrutiny on former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, was a major contributing factor to his resignation in 2022. There has also been major political fallout for the conservative party, as a Covid inquiry[3]suggested that the scandal had destroyed trust in the UK government and damaged their ability to deal with future health crises. Not only that, but the scandal has had an effect on their future political support, as a current general election prediction conducted by Electoral Calculus[4], predicts Conservative votes falling from a 44.7% majority in 2019 to just 24.7% in the fast approaching next general election. A potential outcome of political scandals, that is undoubtedly the most concerning, is the possible reduction in voter turnout due to lack of government trust and support. With voter turnout significantly reducing in the United Kingdom since the 2016 Brexit Referendum[5] and new legislation surrounding the requirement of voter ID being passed, voter turnout in the UK is already declining.
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BE H C LO What can we learn from
“As well as individual damages to reputation, the scandals of political leaders often affect their political parties.”
O D Written by Alfie Johnson
