Political scandal exposes misconduct, corruption, or abuse of power that undermines citizens’ trust in leaders and government institutions. Such events reshape public discourse about ethics and norms, impact elections, and shape how policy makers enforce laws to protect the public interest. They may also lead to the removal of political leaders or prompt reforms in governance, policies, and rules.
What constitutes political scandal varies by place and time, but generally includes activities that violate a country’s laws on corruption, such as accepting bribes or engaging in other illegal activity. Specifically, political corruption involves the use of official powers for private gain, often through illicit gifts or favors. This can occur at the local, state, or national level.
The era of big money and toxic politics is rife with political scandal. Harmful Supreme Court decisions, a cynical public, and the Trump administration’s hostility to checks and balances have eroded norms, led to exploding campaign spending, and fueled a flood of secret money from wealthy donors that has overwhelmed traditional legal limits on how much politicians can accept and spend.
The aim of this article is to understand the effects of political scandals in local politics. We develop two macro-level hypotheses: First, the exposure of a scandal increases the probability of early government dissolutions among coalition partners that include parties implicated in a scandal (e.g., a mayor and his or her party’s members). Second, the exposure of a scandal induces politicians to break — or at least limit — their personal ties to parties involved in a scandal, which can increase the likelihood of political deadlock and government crisis (e.g., by leaving the party or running as an independent).
