When sex is involved, Americans and the media respond to political entanglements with a Puritanical bent. This article provides an overview of US political sex scandals.
1986: CColorado Sen. Gary Hart
In 1986, Sen. Gary Hart (D-CO) resigned from the Senate to run for President. As the front-runner, he challenged the press to "follow him" around. He withdrew after reports of an
extramarital affair with Donna Rice.
1983: Massachusetts Rep. Gerry E. Studds
In 1983, Rep. Gerry E. Studds (D-MA) was censured by the House of Representatives after admitting to an affair with an underage male page.1981: Georgia Rep. Newt Gingrich
Rep. Newt Gingrich (R-GA)
reportedly had an affair in 1977. In 1981, told his first wife the details of his proposed divorce while she was in the hospital, recovering from uterine cancer surgery; six months later he married a younger woman with whom he had been having an affair. They divorced in 1999. In 2000,
Gingrich married a Congressional staffer with whom he had been having an affair.
1976: Ohio Rep. Wayne L. Hays
In May 1976, Rep. Wayne L. Hays (D-OH) reportedly employed his mistress as
a clerk in his office. He resigned in September.
1974: Arkansas Rep. Wilbur Mills
In October 1974, Rep. Wilbur Mills (D-AR) was involved in a traffic incident; stripper Fanne Fox left the car and jumped into the Tidal Basin. He was re-elected. Then
in December, he "accompanied by Fanne Foxe's husband onstage at a Boston strip club where Ms. Foxe was performing." He stepped down as chair of the House Ways and Means Committee and did not run for re-election in 1976.
