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America is a land of opportunity where the poor can become rich, the voiceless can speak out, and the abusers can rise to the highest political office in the country. Today, at least 147 lawmakers across 44 states have been accused of some sort of sexual harassment, assault, or misconduct, including the President of the United States, pointing to a far too pervasive issue within the U.S. political system: abusers in office (Volmert et al., 2025). It is a pattern sustained by partisan bias, weak punishment, elite networks, and culture—but it is not by any means unchangeable.

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History

Sex scandals in politics are a tale as old as time. Hamilton and Cleveland, for instance, faced scrutiny for alleged extramarital affairs (Wills, 2016). In more recent history, allegations against political figures like Clinton and H.W. Bush have gone beyond infidelity to claims of sexual misconduct. Nevertheless, these scandals, infidelity, and misconduct alike, have not amounted to much of anything but a mere headline for the tabloids. Rather than leading to accountability and institutional change, these incidents are brushed under the rug as just another political controversy that will be forgotten once the next one arises.

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Partisan Bias

The perceived truth of these allegations is often not a measure of credibility or evidence, but is largely correlated with the alleged perpetrator’s party identification. Believing a member of an out-party committed such a crude act is easy. It just reaffirms what partisans already believe: members of the opposite party are inherently less moral than members of their own (Klar & McCoy, 2019). This traces back to the concept of partisan motivated reasoning, a phenomenon describing how individuals interpret information through the lens of their party identification, often clouding judgment (Bolsen et al., 2013).

The 2020 presidential election hosted a race between two politicians with sexual misconduct allegations, with some voters describing that they were forced to pick “the lesser of two evils”. In 2020, Joe Biden was accused of sexually assaulting a Senate aide in 1993, and President Donald Trump has faced over 20 allegations of sexual misconduct. When asked about the legitimacy of the accusations against Biden, 14% of Democrats said they were credible, compared to 55% of Republicans, a clear and large margin. Meanwhile, 70% of Democrats and 14% of Republicans found Trump’s allegations to be valid (Clarke et al., 2021).

Studies have also found that higher levels of party pride are positively correlated with more frequent instances of victim blaming (New Research, 2021). When a Quinnipiac poll asked Virginians if they would call for the resignation of an elected official following accusations of sexual harassment or assault by multiple individuals, 55% of Democrats and 39% of Republicans responded yes. But when asked about the rape allegations surrounding Virginia’s then Democratic Lieutenant Governor, Justin Fairfax, 52% of Republicans were in favor of his resignation, but the number for Democrats had dwindled to 24%, exemplifying how moral principle shifts based on party allegiance (Price, 2021).

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Weak Punishment

Some cite their continued support for those accused of abuse as simply an adherence to the “innocent until proven guilty” rationale. But many of these accused individuals never even face a jury, oftentimes escaping prosecution entirely. Does that mean it is still morally just to disregard these allegations, presuming innocence when voting?

Former New York governor Andrew Cuomo was accused of groping an aide in the Executive Mansion in 2020. Cuomo denied this allegation, and an investigation ensued, but insufficient evidence was found to prosecute him, despite the Albany County DA describing the aide’s claim to be “credible” (Villeneuve & Hill, 2022).�� In 2021, the New York Office of the Attorney General published a 168-page report into the claims of 11 women against Cuomo, concluding that “the Governor engaged in conduct constituting sexual harassment under federal and New York State law” (Clark et al., 2021).

While Cuomo faced no criminal convictions in these cases, accountability was pursued in an alternative way—through the people. After the OAG published the report, Cuomo faced considerable backlash from his constituents and fellow policymakers, pressuring his resignation. “I don’t recall doing it, but if she said I did it, I believe her”, Cuomo expressed (Lenthang, 2021). Yet, despite it all, just years later, Cuomo embarked on his bid for NYC mayor because in America, misconduct allegations are nothing but a minor setback in seeking office.

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Elite Networks

When political power is reinforced by elite connections, accountability is much harder to achieve.��

Sociologist C. Wright Mills offered a framework describing how the “power elite” can operate as a network to expand its own interests, undermining the integrity of democracy (Berquist, 2024). The Epstein files have played a significant role in revealing these elite networks. While not being a political figure himself, Epstein's relationship to those in office shielded him from accountability. Epstein’s 2008 charges, which resulted in a generous “sweetheart” plea deal extended by former US Attorney and Labor Secretary Alex Acosta, gave a glimpse into the type of favor-trading that characterizes these networks. The plea was the only non-prosecution agreement Acosta offered during his time as a U.S. Attorney, raising concerns about the transparency of the negotiations (The U. S. House Committee on Oversight, 2025). As a result, Epstein was let off with a lenient work-release sentence, only to be rearrested 10 years later on charges related to sex trafficking. After Epstein’s 2019 arrest, Acosta, who had transitioned to President Trump’s labor secretary, experienced hefty backlash for the plea deal, leading to his resignation from the role (Rascoe, 2019).

Elite connections interfere with the very institutions meant to uphold justice. This is true even at the very highest level—the Supreme Court. Following Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s initial confirmation hearings, accusations from three women alleging misconduct during Kavanaugh’s high school and college years came to light (The Washington Post, 2018). In September of 2018, Kavanaugh and his first accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, both testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Afterwards, a supplemental background investigation proceeded. Democratic senator Sheldon Whitehouse examined this investigation, claiming it was tainted by the Trump administration. The FBI neglected to pursue corroborating evidence and failed to scope out any of the tips from their public tipline, Whitehouse claimed (“Whitehouse Unveils Report Examining Failures of Supplemental Background Investigation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh,” 2024). Kavanaugh was later sworn in.

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Culture

Behind each of these mechanisms is an American culture reinforcing them. During Kavanaugh’s hearings, Lindsey Graham posed the question: “Would you say you’ve been through hell?” To which Kavanaugh responded: “I’ve been through hell and then some”, reframing him as a victim of the investigation.

His allies helped perpetuate the narrative that frequently protects so many abusers from the consequences of their actions: the promise of a good future (Pareene, 2019).�� Modern misogyny constantly refashions female victims as the villains and their abusers as the innocent whose prospects are being ruined by the accusations. The Clinton scandal demonstrates this phenomenon. After lying under oath about his inappropriate sexual relations with White House intern, Monica Lewinsky, Clinton’s approval rating was 10 points higher on January 26, 1998 than it was before the scandal broke. And even after the House voted to impeach him, his approval rating still lingered at a solid 71% (DeSilver, 2019). Despite being a victim of the most powerful person in the U.S., Lewinsky was relentlessly ridiculed and slut-shamed by the American public, with only 12% of Americans viewing her favorably (Friedman, 2021).

In America, sexual assault and misconduct allegations do not bar you from success, wealth, power, and political office. Our culture is still stuck in the outdated “boys will be boys” mentality. Society trivializes their behavior, excusing abuse and harassment on the grounds that it is no fault but that of their natural inclinations.

Nevertheless, the people still have the force to hold their legislators accountable. The recent allegations against democratic representative Eric Swalwell are the latest continuation of this pattern. His resignation, like that of the others mentioned in this essay, points to a critical truth—while the problem persists, one thing remains the same: those in power will always answer to the people.
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References

Berquist, J. L. (2024). Power elite. EBSCO Research Starters.

Bolsen, T., James N. Druckman, & Cook, F. L. (2013). The influence of partisan motivated reasoning on public opinion. Political Behavior, 36(1), 235–262.

Clark, A. L., Grant, Y., Kim, J. H., Park, J. K., Mainoo, A., & Mukhi, R. (2021). Report of investigation into allegations of sexual harassment by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo. New York State Office of the Attorney General.

Clarke, E. J. R., Klas, A., Lizzio-Wilson, M., & Kothe, E. J. (2022). Partisan bias in responses to sexual misconduct allegations against male politicians. Journal of Social and Political Psychology, 10(2), Article e6371.

DeSilver, D. (2019, October 3). Clinton’s impeachment barely dented his public support, and it turned off many Americans. Pew Research Center.

Friedman, A. (2021). The price of shame: Second-wave feminism and the Lewinsky–Clinton scandal. In Heterosexual histories (pp. 358–386). New York University Press.

Klar, S., & McCoy, A. (2021). Partisan-motivated evaluations of sexual misconduct and the mitigating role of the #MeToo movement. American Journal of Political Science, 65(4), 777–789.

Lenthang, M. (2021, August 11). Governor Cuomo’s resignation: A timeline of the sexual harassment allegations. ABC7 New York.

New research: How political bias impacts believing sexual assault victims. (2021, August 1). Syracuse University Today.

Pareene, A. (2019). Teenage pricks: Trumpism’s brand of boy power. The Baffler, (45), 6–14.

Price, M. (2021, March 9). Cuomo and #MeToo: The partisanship of sexual misconduct allegations. Marist Poll.

Rascoe, A. (2019, July 12). Alexander Acosta steps down as labor secretary amid Epstein controversy. NPR.

U.S. House Committee on Oversight. (2025, October 17). Oversight Democrats’ statement on public release of Epstein prosecutor and former Trump labor secretary Alex Acosta interview transcript.

Villeneuve, M., & Hill, M. (2022, January 7). Judge dismisses criminal charge against Andrew Cuomo. PBS NewsHour.

Volmert, I., Lieb, D. A., & Diaz, O. (2025, March 24). 147 lawmakers in 44 states accused of sexual harassment or misconduct since 2017. PBS NewsHour.

The Washington Post. (2018, September 27). The allegations against Brett Kavanaugh [Video]. YouTube.

Sheldon Whitehouse. (2024, October 8). Whitehouse unveils report examining failures of supplemental background investigation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

Wills, M. (2016, October 24). The venerable tradition of the presidential sex scandal. JSTOR Daily.