#partypolitics — Public Fediverse posts

DATE: August 15, 2026 at 09:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG

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TITLE: Voters punish politicians more for infidelity if their spouse leaves them

URL: https://www.psypost.org/voters-punish-politicians-more-for-infidelity-if-their-spouse-leaves-them/

When a political candidate is caught in an infidelity scandal, voters judge the politician more harshly if their spouse decides to leave the marriage. A recent experiment also revealed that voters tend to punish politicians from their own political party more severely than those across the aisle. These results were published in the *Journal of Political Marketing*.

Political spouses frequently act as character witnesses for candidates, projecting an image of stability and family values to the public. When a scandal breaks, the spouse is often thrust into the spotlight. Their reaction can serve as a guide for how voters should interpret the controversy. In American politics, examples range from Hillary Clinton’s public defense of Bill Clinton in the 1990s to Melania Trump’s continued presence following allegations against Donald Trump.

The theoretical expectations surrounding spousal responses are split. On one hand, a supportive spouse might signal to the public that the marriage can survive, softening the blow of the scandal. This aligns with traditional gender expectations, sometimes termed benevolent sexism, where women are rewarded by society for remaining loyal in prescribed roles. On the other hand, if a spouse leaves, it could validate the public’s worst suspicions about the candidate’s character.

Political party values also complicate these expectations. Democratic candidates often emphasize social justice and gender equality, meaning an affair could be viewed as a hypocritical violation of those ideals. Republican candidates frequently campaign on traditional family values and moral behavior. An infidelity scandal could similarly damage a conservative politician’s credibility by contradicting their stated platform.

Jason Gainous, a mass communication researcher at the University of Sharjah, led a team of political scientists to examine these dynamics. They wanted to understand whether a wife’s decision to stay with or leave an unfaithful politician changes how voters evaluate him. The research team also sought to determine how a voter’s own political party affiliation influences their judgment of the candidate’s actions.

To test these reactions, the researchers designed an online survey experiment involving adult participants. They included quality control measures to ensure participants were paying attention, discarding automated bot responses and those who completed the survey too quickly or too slowly. This left a final sample of 1,401 individuals who were guided through a three-stage process simulating the unfolding of a political scandal.

First, each person read a fictional biography of a male candidate. The biographies detailed the candidate’s age, education, military service, and political experience. The profiles were identical, except half the participants were told the candidate was a Democrat, and the other half were told he was a Republican.

After reading the biography, participants rated their support for the candidate. They answered questions about how likely they were to vote for him, share his information on social media, donate to his campaign, attend a fundraiser, and trust him. These responses were combined into a general index of candidate support.

In the second stage, participants read a mock news article revealing that the candidate had engaged in an affair with a legislative assistant. The article noted that the politician initially lied to his constituents before admitting to the relationship and expressing regret. After reading this update, the participants evaluated the candidate again. As expected, support for the candidate dropped across the board after the scandal was revealed.

The final stage introduced the key experimental variable. Participants read a second news story detailing the spouse’s reaction to the affair. Half of the group read that the spouse decided to stay in the marriage and support the candidate. The other half read that the spouse chose to separate from the politician. Following this final update, participants rated the candidate a third time using the same set of questions.

The researchers tracked the shifts in support across these three stages to measure how much participants penalized the candidate. The data revealed that voters punished the candidate more severely when his wife chose to leave him. While a supportive spouse did not completely erase the reputational damage of the affair, a separating spouse amplified the negative evaluations. The wife’s departure appeared to confirm the severity of the candidate’s moral failing in the eyes of the voters.

The researchers also measured participants’ adherence to traditional gender roles to see if these beliefs influenced their reactions. Participants who held stronger traditional or sexist views regarding gender were harsher on the candidate in reaction to the spouse’s decision. However, when looking at the overall shift from the initial biography to the final spousal decision, these same individuals were slightly less likely to penalize the candidate overall compared to other voters.

The research team uncovered unexpected patterns regarding political party affiliation. They initially hypothesized that voters would be protective of candidates from their own party and harsher on opponents. Past research often suggests that voters will rationalize the bad behavior of a politician who shares their ideology to protect their party’s electoral success. The results of this experiment showed the exact opposite.

Participants were actually more likely to penalize a candidate who shared their own political affiliation. This penalty was especially pronounced when the spouse left the candidate. Strong Democrats were highly critical of the Democratic candidate in this scenario. Strong Republicans displayed a similar, though slightly less extreme, willingness to punish the Republican candidate when the marriage ended.

Overall, voters were slightly more likely to penalize the Democratic candidate than the Republican candidate for the affair. The researchers accounted for variables like respondent age, education, and income, ensuring that the effects they observed were primarily driven by the experimental changes and political affiliations.

The experiment provides a controlled look at voter behavior, but real-world political landscapes involve additional variables. The study focused exclusively on a heterosexual male politician, which reflects the most common demographic involved in historical political sex scandals. Public reactions might differ if the unfaithful politician were female or if the scandal involved a same-sex relationship.

The specific nature of the affair and the candidate’s apology could also alter public perception in real-world scenarios. The mock scenario combined infidelity with workplace power dynamics and public deception. Future research could isolate these elements to see how different forms of misconduct influence voter forgiveness. Evolving cultural norms around gender and marriage will likely continue to shift how the public interprets these personal controversies.

The study, “Political Evaluations and Spousal Responses to Candidate Infidelity: Should I Stay or Should I Go?,” was authored by Jason Gainous, Alyson Hendricks-Benton, Lauren Reuss, Taylor Sowders, Forest Clevenger, Samuel Stottman, Julia Mattingly, and Bella Beilman.

URL: https://www.psypost.org/voters-punish-politicians-more-for-infidelity-if-their-spouse-leaves-them/

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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #politicalscandal #voters #infidelity #spouseresponse #politicalmarketing #voterbehavior #partypolitics #charactervsperception #genderroles #pollingresearch

#RonnieSalt is, if anything, good at rubbing salt on our political wounds but it’s theraputic even if it stings a little. Bear with her and read it through, laugh while you cringe, and shake your head at the cruel reality it portrays.

To boot, she makes a good point:
“In Australian politics right now, we’ve entered Saturday Night Live levels of parody. And just like SNL, the only people laughing are the players. If you add up the cost of supporting the crop of people in politics mentioned here, most of whom were paid to represent you, you might come close to over $6 million a year. Add in the cost of corruption commissions and police time spent on either bashing their own citizens or investigating histrionic allegations, and you’re getting closer to $10 million, $12 million and counting. If you’re wondering why you can’t save for a deposit for a house, or why your job stacking shelves in Woolworths isn’t getting you anywhere, why not consider a career in politics in Australia?”

My answer is simple enough, I couldn’t possibly imagine myself licking the boots of the narcisist leadership I’d be subjected to — in any Party. As an independent… life would be too hard for poor ol’ me and I’ve got better things to do in my retirement. As A younger lad, I considered it but lacked the ‘lived expereince’ necessary to truly represent a constituency. All I’ve ever done is vote (as you do) and still castigate myself for not voting informed 100% all the time. I know what I was like at 16… don’t ask… but I cannot in all honesty say that had I been required to vote then, I’d not have had the maturity to do my civic duty the justice it demands. Are today’s 16 yo better able to deliver? I honestly don’t know. I have no relationships with young people these days.

I will not apologise for the spoiler, but Ronnie’s punch line points at the reader and lets them know who’s is at fault for allowing this circus to go on.

“You can tell people to get fucked in country town halls for $100 an hour and make up stories about assaults that never happened, drive around in a ski mask, tell shit sexist jokes that weren’t funny even at the Ferntree Gully pub in 1987, and stay up all night worrying about the colour of your weekly rubbish bin lid – all for the price of millions of dollars a year of money that isn’t yours.
This is Australian politics in 2026. Trivial side-shows and grift-maxxing on a grand scale and yes, all of it is a joke. But while we keep paying for it, the joke is always on us.”

https://theshot.net.au/uncategorized/our-politics-is-a-farce-and-youre-paying-for-the-tickets/

#AusPol #Voting #PartyPolitics #PartyDuopoly #PoliticianPerks #PoliticianRemuneration #Junkets #WealthyBenefactors #Oligarchy #Lobbyists #PoliticalDonations #ElectionsMatter #YourVoteMatters #PowersBehindTheThrone #AusElections2028 #SocialDemocracy #DumbElectorate #CivicDuty #InformedVoting #VotingAge #PoliticalCareer

Does Avi Lewis’s NDP Mark a Comeback of Canada’s Left?

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://jacobin.com/2026/06/canada-lewis-ndp-democratic-socialism

The Socialist Future Is Being Written in New York

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://jacobin.com/2026/06/dsa-nyc-elections-zohran-democrats

Climate Action Can Win Majorities

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://jacobin.com/2026/05/climate-change-politics-democrats-affordability

Italy’s Ruling Class Has Found Its Plan B

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://jacobin.com/2026/05/italy-genoa-salis-meloni-campaign

Freedom News: **Anarchist News Review: Local elections special (Boo! hiss!)**

https://freedomnews.org.uk/2026/05/08/anarchist-news-review-local-elections-special-boo-hiss/

Jon, Andy and Simon talk about local elections tonight, and you know we’re non-partisan because our main manifesto point would involve gettin…
The post Anarchist News Review: Local elections special (Boo! hiss!) appeared first on Freedom News.

#News #AnarchistNewsRe #Election #GreenParty #LabourParty #Partypolitics

Liking this idea from George Monbiot on political funding.

"There’s a simple way of sorting all this out. ... The only money a party can receive is a standard fee (say £25) for membership. The government then matches that fee on a fixed multiple. For instance, if you have 100,000 members each paying £25, and the multiple is three, your annual budget is £10m. And that’s it: no other sources permitted. The parties would agree between themselves, with public input (perhaps a citizens’ assembly), on what the membership fee and multiple should be."

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/apr/30/political-donations-poison-democracy-antidote-reform-uk

#UKPol #politics #PartyPolitics #funding #law

"The interesting thing is, individual MPs - you pointed out Hana[-Rawhiti Maipi-Clark], Tamatha Paul - have some really good stuff on their individual media, the parties are not really picking things up or popularising them."

https://www.1of200.nz/podcast/1200-s2e194-shoes-on-the-ground

Maybe political parties are dead weight in the digital age? Maybe choosing MMP as our proportional representation system was a mistake, because it gives Parliament's supreme power to parties?

(1/?)

#PartyPolitics #MMP #ProportionalRepresentation

Brirish ruling party blocks popular politician from running for Parliament because he is a challenge to their Dear Leader.

"Andy Burnham blocked from standing in Gorton and Denton"

Political parties are designed to limit choice and concentrate power.

https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk-politics/2026/01/andy-burnham-blocked-from-standing-in-gorton-and-denton

> Claims of a stitch up by Starmer’s allies on the NEC have already been circulating

#partyPolitics #democracy

Great to listen to the BBC supporting women CEOs. There is a proviso, none should believe any idealist hype, that there is going to be a natural accretion from the corporate abuse of LLMs to a more ethical and sustainable morality! Competition without mediated regulation drives the wealth and power of companies in competition to secure and protect antitrust monopolies to finance political corruption. Deregulated markets have and always will unless the many take responsibility. Will they hold the corporate mob and their cult to account by ending the reality of negative-sum party politics? #LLM #idealism #CorporateSophists #PartyPolitics #DeregulatedMarkets #NegativeSumEcocide https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3ct8c43

Labour’s economic plan will take years to deliver, Keir Starmer says

Surely economic plans for trillions of pounds should be long term?

There's a problem with a decision-making system that doesn't allow for both tactics and strategies.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/nov/30/labours-economic-plan-will-take-years-to-deliver-keir-starmer-says

#partyPolitics

With its future uncertain, should the NDP pursue power or principles?

https://www.thestar.com/politics/federal/with-its-future-uncertain-should-the-ndp-pursue-power-or-principles/article_aa13e9f6-4d65-42bd-9dfa-9ab3d4b183eb.html

“We want to win more seats. That is the goal of this party,” McPherson told the Star in an interview ahead of her campaign launch. “It should be the goal of every political party, because the more seats we win, the more power we have to effect change that helps Canadians.”

The fundamental problem with the party system.

You have to prioritize winning because otherwise you can't implement your policies, no matter how good.

But if you don't put policy first, you get leaders who either don't believe in the policies or lie about their beliefs.

#partyPolitics

The Democrats’ Disastrous Shutdown Strategy: A Shameful Weaponization of Human Suffering

https://theinterfaithintrepidart.com/2025/11/11/the-democrats-disastrous-shutdown-strategy-a-shameful-weaponization-of-human-suffering/

Conservatives urged to soften stance after Poilievre’s comments on ‘despicable’ RCMP face backlash

"Talking points sent to Conservative MPs who may face public or media questions about Poilievre’s controversial remarks were obtained by the Star by a confidential source.

They direct Poilievre’s caucus to essentially do damage control over Poilievre’s comments last week"

When MPs are "directed" and "instructed" by their leader on what to say, it make it very obvious that they don't represent voters in Parliament. They represent their leader to voters.

https://www.thestar.com/politics/federal/conservatives-urged-to-soften-stance-after-poilievres-comments-on-despicable-rcmp-face-backlash/article_fb6e73dd-f349-4e0f-8b95-e7cd565a0b27.html

> The Opposition leader’s office instructed Conservative MPs on Monday to reinforce a more positive message about the nation’s police force.

#democracy #partyPolitics #CDNPoli #NoTyrants

New York Republicans have shut down the state’s Young Republicans chapter after a leaked group chat revealed racist and antisemitic messages from its leaders. State GOP chair Ed Cox cited both “gross mismanagement” and the offensive language as reasons for suspension, emphasizing such rhetoric has no place in the party. The move contrasts with some national GOP figures and comes as NY Republicans seek to attract moderates and independents. Former chapter chair Peter Giunta apologized but was fired from a legislative job. The scandal spotlights ongoing tensions over party image and extremism. More: https://www.wrvo.org/2025-10-17/gop-officials-vote-to-disband-ny-young-republicans-chapter-after-leak-of-racist-texts #NYGOP #YoungRepublicans #Racism #PartyPolitics #PoliticalAccountability

"Vague notions of passing the torch from old to young are now the cause du jour for centrist liberals. Little wonder: the youth narrative allows them to appear to be yielding to populist change-oriented energies while simultaneously eliding the value of economically progressive and democratic socialist political ideas. When disconnected from a popular pro-worker agenda, youth-based campaigns hijack more substantive demands for change and displace the role of economic populism in delivering that change. At best, they promote a flimsy generational affiliation in lieu of broad class consciousness. At worst, these campaigns are sometimes Trojan Horse threats against more genuinely progressive incumbents.

If a politician is no longer able to do their job effectively because of aging or a simple lack of will, whoever tries to replace them should at a minimum be able to distinguish themselves on more than just personal biography. They should be able to articulate what, exactly, they will be fighting for, and they should have an ambitious political platform and the organizing bona fides to back it up. Generational change is a false spring. Only a working-class movement and candidates who are committed to representing it offer real hope for a brighter day."

https://jacobin.com/2025/09/youth-democrats-mamdani-populism-politics

#USA #Democrats #DemocraticParty #Populism #Youth #DemocraticSocialism #Politics #PartyPolitics

Die Losdemokratiepartei ist eine Idiotenpartei

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk2asaMu_FM

#Idiocracy #Idiokratie #EntIdiotisierung #Politisierung #Demokratisierung #Demokratie #Losdemokratie #Losverfahren #Democracy #Politics #Parties #Party #PartyPolitics

A quotation from Will Rogers

All you would have to do to make some men Atheists is just to tell them that the Lord belonged to the opposition Political Party. After that they could never see any good in Him.

Will Rogers (1879-1935) American humorist
Column (1925-03-29), “Weekly Article”

Sourcing, notes: wist.info/rogers-will/76493/

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #willrogers #demonization #opposition #partisanship #partypolitics #politics #usversusthem

A quotation from Franklin Roosevelt

In dictatorships there can be no party divisions. For all men must think as they are told, speak as they are told, write as they are told, live — and die — as they are told. In those countries the Nation is not above the party, as with us; the party is above the Nation; the party is the Nation. Every common man and woman is forced to walk the straight and narrow path of the party line, not strictly speaking a party line, but rather a line drawn by the dictator himself, who owns the party.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945) American lawyer, politician, statesman, US President (1933-1945)
Speech (1941-03-29), Jackson Day Radio Broadcast, U.S.S. Potomac

Sourcing, notes: wist.info/roosevelt-franklin-d…

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #fdr #franklinroosevelt #division #dissent #totalitarianism #autocracy #dictatorship #nation #obedience #party #partypolitics #state #tyranny

Nobody knows a particular DEI program they don't agree with | @destiny

#DEI #AffirmativeAction #PartyPolitics #Parroting #Destiny

A quotation from Franklin Roosevelt

The dictators cannot seem to realize that here in America our people can maintain two parties, and at the same time maintain an inviolate and indivisible Nation. The totalitarian mentality is too narrow to comprehend the greatness of a people who can be divided in party allegiance at election time, but remain united in devotion to their country and to the ideals of democracy at all times.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945) American lawyer, politician, statesman, US President (1933-1945)
Speech (1941-03-29), Jackson Day Radio Broadcast, U.S.S. Potomac

Sourcing, notes: wist.info/roosevelt-franklin-d…

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #fdr #franklinroosevelt #America #democracy #dictatorship #party #partypolitics #patriotism #politicalparty #tyranny #unity

A quotation from Addison

A man must be excessively stupid, as well as uncharitable, who believes that there is no virtue but on his own side, and that there are not men as honest as himself who may differ from him in political principles.

Joseph Addison (1672-1719) English essayist, poet, statesman
Essay (1711-12-08), The Spectator, No. 243

Sourcing, notes: wist.info/addison-joseph/1442/

#quote #quotes #quotation #antagonism #belief #binary #honesty #opinion #oversimplification #partisan #partypolitics #politics #principles #takesides #virtue

#Introduction

French scholar, working and living in Prague.
My research focuses on party politics and social cleavages in the Arab world. I have mostly worked on Egypt (since my PhD) and more recently (2019) on Tunisia.

#PoliSci #PoliticalScience #MENA #PartyPolitics #Egypt #Tunisia
@politicalscience

#Introduction

French scholar, working and living in Prague.
My research focus on party politics and social cleavages in the Arab world. I have mostly worked on Egypt (since my PhD) and more recently (2019) on Tunisia.

#PoliSci #MENA #PartyPolitics #Egypt #Tunisia

@kentparkstreet1 @yllamana
I beg to differ. The party is actually working, just not the way you or I may wish it to. But Party policy and legislative agenda are absolutely rock solid and responding to calls from the majority of its members/member submissions. Just because I sit left of the main policies pursued by a Labor govt doesn’t mean the Party is not working. And just because there is some common ground between my political position and the Greens platform, it does not mean that the voting Greens is a better electoral option than the Labor Party (from where I stand).
#auspol #partyPolitics #Labor #greens #independents

@kentparkstreet1
I was reluctant to comment when I read your toot. Prob because I do not want to clash over political affiliations. Today though, I thought I'd emphasise that IMO balance of power only works if those holding the balance of votes care more about their social licence (the wellbeing of the communities) than the power they hold. It's a big ask for a fledgling 'group' (Party?) to preference community well being over deals which increase the group (party) power in parliament. There may be idealists in there somewhere but they just don't last long in the 'pit of politics'. With 'independents' we get a little closer to community interests becauase there is no 'groupthink' or 'groupInterests' to take into account. Getting an independent to represent your community is possible anywhere, it just takes local effort from a mob of committed volunteers who care enough to put the work into it. There, said my piece. thank you for reading. I apologise if I've offended in any way.
#auspol #independents #partyPolitics