Analysis: When do candidate scandals actually matter? | CNN Politics

An exit poll in the contentious 2025 Virginia attorney general’s race included a striking takeaway, with national implications: People who find candidates’ past behavior disqualifying may still vote for them. Late in the campaign, it had been revealed that Democratic nominee Jay Jones sent text messages years earlier suggesting that a GOP lawmaker should be shot and that his children should die. Jones still won the election by more than six points. The exit poll showed 41% of voters said the texts were “disqualifying” — but 9% of those people voted for him anyway. Given that example and plenty of others, including President Donald Trump’s lengthy political career despite his own personal scandals, it can be tempting to assume that personal controversies — like the multitude about Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner — don’t really matter. The New York Times on Thursday published a lengthy investigation about six women Platner dated, with three saying he had engaged in toxic behavior and one accusing him of physically threatening conduct (Platner has strongly disputed any claims of physical intimidation or altercations). That’s after previous stories