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Going into the fall midterm season, political scandals are in the air in U.S. politics. Over the past few months, the public has been confronted with a series of high-profile scandals that have become challenges for both parties.

Democrats were forced to scramble in July after a sexual assault allegation brought down Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, who was replaced by the working-class Troy Jackson. Although Platner denied the accusation and had already survived multiple controversies, including the discovery of an apparent Nazi tattoo and reports that he had sent sexually explicit messages to women other than his wife, the last round of allegations proved more than Democrats could tolerate. In April, California Rep. Eric Swalwell was accused of sexual assault and misconduct by several women. While denying the allegations, Swalwell resigned.

Going into the fall midterm season, political scandals are in the air in U.S. politics. Over the past few months, the public has been confronted with a series of high-profile scandals that have become challenges for both parties.

Democrats were forced to scramble in July after a sexual assault allegation brought down Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, who was replaced by the working-class Troy Jackson. Although Platner denied the accusation and had already survived multiple controversies, including the discovery of an apparent Nazi tattoo and reports that he had sent sexually explicit messages to women other than his wife, the last round of allegations proved more than Democrats could tolerate. In April, California Rep. Eric Swalwell was accused of sexual assault and misconduct by several women. While denying the allegations, Swalwell resigned.

Republicans have also faced numerous political scandals. The most prominent example is Texas Senate candidate Ken Paxton, the current state attorney general, who was impeached in 2023 by the Republican-controlled state House of Representatives (and later acquitted by the state Senate) and was the subject of a federal corruption investigation involving allegations connected to bribery and abusing power. Paxton has also for years faced rumors of an extramarital affair—a contrast to his self-promotion as a champion of “traditional” social values. Paxton, whom President Donald Trump endorsed in the primary, is not alone. Florida Rep. Cory Mills, who lost his primary on Aug. 18, has been accused by women of assault and making threats. Ohio Rep. Max Miller’s ex-wife has said that he abused her. North Carolina Rep. Chuck Edwards ended his reelection campaign earlier this month after the House Ethics Committee found that he had engaged in inappropriate conduct toward female staffers and recommended that he be........

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