Despite Scandals, Virginia Politicians Refuse to Resign. Now What?
Gov.
Northam has been wounded by the exposure of racism in his past -- his approval ratings are down sharply since the scandal broke. But the bottom hasn't fallen out for him. A
It's rare for governors to be forced out of office. When they are, the career-ending scandals tend to be rooted in recent events. There isn't really a template for politicians to be kicked out for their behavior in the distant past -- no matter how disturbing. Governors who do survive scandals generally become more aggressive after in pursuing their policy agenda, says
Governors who survive scandal, he says, place more emphasis on bread-and-butter issues, such as education and children's issues, along with a heightened emphasis on law and order. They also talk more about morality.
"It's kind of an overcorrection," says Rottinghaus, a political scientist at the
But now that he's politically wounded, lacking support even from his own party, it's not hard to imagine that Northam will end up getting sidelined if he stays in office.
"The best guess right now is that Northam limps along for the next three years as governor," says
Northam hopes to clear his name by making racial reconciliation a focus of his term. He's meeting with black faith and civil rights leaders. His office released a list of black history books he's reading. He pledged to "take a harder line" in favor of removing Confederate monuments.
On Tuesday, Northam announced he was restoring voting rights to nearly 11,000 former felons -- an issue that disproportionately affects black men. It's the continuation of a policy his predecessor,
"If you look back over high visibility scandals, you really do see some effort to try to right the wrongs of the past," says Farnsworth. "Most people who face a scandal and survive it politically are going to be immensely careful to behave properly in that area of scandal."
Surviving, and Thriving, After Scandal
Last week,
If Northam, Fairfax and Herring were all to step down -- a scenario that appears increasingly unlikely -- Republican state House Speaker
Despite the clamor of calls for them all to resign, it's not unusual for politicians to survive scandals.
"There's a lot of inertia built into the political system," Rottinghaus says. "Most voters are reluctant to turn people out of office."
The most damaging scandals typically involve financial indiscretions, Rottinghaus says. Often, they speak to some issue that can be pinned to larger ethical concerns about the offending politician's party as a whole. If there are already concerns that a state's political culture is corrupt, a politician caught in a bribery or fraud scandal will have a harder time extricating himself.
The Scandal Playbook
Some commentators say that Northam's decision to stay in office is emblematic of
Last year,
"For me, the Clinton administration was a landmark experience showing that people want to forgive and accept misbehavior, especially if the accused looks 'wounded' and 'hurt,'" says Woodard, who teaches at
Sanford survived a scandal that, like the situation in
"When the scandal broke, Sanford apologized and went on," Woodard says. "I saw him at conservative
Acts of Contrition
Northam is taking a different approach.
He announced Monday that he'll embark on a statewide "listening tour" about race. The governor is ready to face public criticism about the issue, if it means he can keep his job and, as his staff repeatedly says, have a chance to clear his name.
Northam has been asked to resign by his own state party, Democratic National Committee Chair
Since he's unwilling to go, however, there's not much they can do about it. The legislature has yet to show any sign that it intends to remove Northam from office.
"Northam has made it very clear that he wants an opportunity for rehabilitation," Farnsworth says. "The yearbook blackface scandal of more than 30 years ago does not seem likely to be viewed as an impeachable offense."
Northam has yet to see a top staffer or cabinet official resign from his office. By contrast, most of Fairfax's staff resigned on Monday. But that same day, Virginia House Democrats backed away from a plan to start impeachment proceedings against the lieutenant governor.
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