March 14, 2018

The Only Way To Get Rid Of Some Male Politicians May Be If Me Too Voters Throw Them Out

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/me-too-state-races-politics_us_5aa95c88e4b0f4aaa112f30c

The Only Way To Get Rid Of Some Male Politicians May Be If ‘Me Too’ Voters Throw Them Out

The impact of the Me Too movement might also extend to electing a historic number of female lawmakers.

By Matt Fuller and Amanda Terkel
Kim Hong-Ji / Reuters

WASHINGTON ― The Me Too movement has already upended the careers of more than a half dozen members of Congress, with plenty more who are the subject of allegations and rumors that could feel the wrath of voters in November. And even though the movement has had mixed results in cleaning up state legislatures thus far, the push could help propel a record number of women into office.

Emily’s List, a PAC that supports pro-choice women running for office, pointed out that there are a record number of women running for office this year, and they believe there will be a record number of women who win, even if some men with questionable histories survive a November purge.

“You can’t yell every offending member out of office,” an Emily’s List spokesperson told HuffPost. “It comes down to the ballot at the end of the day.”

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In politics, it seems the only guarantee that such men will leave is if voters drag them out in November.

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In California, two of the leading contenders to become governor ― current Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa ― have both had very public affairs while in office. (Newsom actually had an affair with a good friend’s wife, who was one of Newsom’s aides at the time, while Villaraigosa has acknowledged two affairs.) Interestingly, their past indiscretions have not disqualified them from the governor’s race. There are no allegations of harassment in either case, but their affairs have come up again this cycle in the new context of the Me Too movement. Both men have repeatedly apologized for their past actions.

In Georgia, one of the leading contenders to become lieutenant governor ― current state Rep. David Shafer (R) ― was accused late last week of retaliating against a lobbyist who turned down his advances. Despite those allegations, Shafer is moving ahead with his campaign. And current Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle (R), who’s now running to become governor, has long been the focus of numerous rumors of infidelity. In fact, strategists and close political observers of Georgia politics told HuffPost that those rumors were the real reason Cagle dropped out of a 2009 race to become governor, not back problems as he said at the time.

(Cagle’s office did not respond to multiple requests for comment.)


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“After the Me Too movement erupted late last year, there wasn’t the same cascade of allegations in Georgia as in other states,” one close observer of Georgia politics said. “But the ethics complaint filed involving Shafer has the potential to really shake up that race, and there’s a sense that it could be the start of more allegations against other politicians from both parties.”

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In Florida, where a prominent state senator was forced to resign, a strong anti-harassment bill recently died in the legislature, and it’s unclear if a toxic culture in the state ouse will actually end. (Lobbying firms were apparently paying “closers” to perform sexual favors for Florida lawmakers in an attempt to influence them.)

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It is clear to most strategists across the country, however, that women are motivated to vote this year ― whether spurred by the Me Too movement, opposition to President Donald Trump or other factors.

The Emily’s List spokesperson pointed out that, since Election Day 2016, the group has been contacted by 34,000 women who are looking to run for office, compared to just 920 women during the 2016 election cycle. And while Emily’s List acknowledges that the influx of women seeking office isn’t entirely due to the Me Too movement, they do think it has further encouraged women to run and vote. The group is currently targeting 598 statehouse races, 60 congressional seats, a dozen governor’s mansions and two Senate seats.

Perhaps the most representative state of the broader female trend in politics is Pennsylvania. In the Keystone State, there are currently no women in the congressional delegation, 38 of 203 House seats in Pennsylvania are women, and in the 50-member Senate, there are only nine women.

One GOP state legislator, Nick Miccarelli, has been accused of sexually assaulting an unidentified woman, and another state representative who was once romantically involved with Miccarelli has a restraining order out against him. But Miccarelli is pressing ahead while even running for reelection at the moment.

The Me Too movement may not take down someone like Miccarelli in Pennsylvania, but it might help usher in historic numbers of women. One Democratic strategist in Pennsylvania, Dan Fee, predicted that at least two or three women would end up as part of the congressional delegation after November, and Emily’s List pointed out that 98 women had filed to run for the state legislature in Pennsylvania.

Fee also pointed out that, just weeks after the Me Too movement started, there was one interesting trend during the 2017 judicial elections in his state: All seven judges who were elected in Pennsylvania were women.