Political Scandals That Rocked The World
Political scandals are nothing new but sometimes the extent of the crimes and the impact they have is huge and shakes the faith of the people who chose them to lead.
Silvio Berlusconi
One of the dirtiest politicians on this list, Berlusconi was involved in Italian politics for 20 years of which he led the country for 9. It was eventually uncovered that he was as corrupt as they come and he also received indictments for child prostitution, abuse of power and more.
As will be a common theme in all these scandals, Berlusconi got off from all charges of corruption and other crimes with community service.
Bill Clinton And Monica Lewinsky
One of the most famous scandals of the modern age is that of Bill Clinton and his affair with Monica Lewinsky.
The former president risked impeachment in his final term but he eventually confessed to the affair and was let off with a slap on his wrist, i.e. a $25 000 fine and no jail time. If he had been lucky he could have won that sum playing online blackjack NZ games, as it seems the former president is quite the gambling man!
Jerome Cahuzac
Jerome Cahuzac served as the finance and budget minister for France under François Hollande. He was forced to resign when it came to light that he had hidden offshore bank accounts.
While collecting taxes he was avoiding paying them himself. He eventually confessed and was sentenced to 3 years in prison, currently he is still out on appeal.
Moshe Katsav
Moshe Katsav was the prime minister of Israel for 7 years. His political career ended when he was accused of rape by two former employees, and of sexual harassment by one of his assistants.
He received a ridiculous 7 year sentence and went on to only serve 5 of those. An impressively low sentence in such a religiously right wing country.
Tengentopoli
In 1992 in Milan, Italy, an investigation was started after claims of bribery started emerging in the press. The investigation was called Clean Hands and led to the downfall of an incredible number of Italian political figures.
It also lead to multiple politicians committing suicide and the eventual fall of both the Italian Socialist Party and the Christian Democratic Party.
The Teapot Dome
Minister of Interior in the US in the 20’s, Albert Fall was involved in one of the biggest political scandals of the time. During this time the then president Warren Harding for the first time authorised the handing out of oil exploration rights.
This led to frenzy in the country to find oil reserves. The desperation for this literal pot of gold was so much that Albert Fall was given $400 000 in gifts, $100 000 as a loan plus a promise of a job when his political career ended, by oil companies. Fall eventually just served 1 year in prison and had to pay a $100 000 fine.
The Chappaquiddick Incident
The Kennedys are a legendary family beset by both scandal and tragedy. In 1969, Senator Ted Kennedy was involved in a huge scandal. While vacationing in Cape Cod, Kennedy drove his car off the road and fell into a channel.
Kennedy escaped the car and returned to his hotel. The car was only found the following morning with the body of Mary Jo Kopechne in it. Kennedy got off with a 2 month suspended sentence.
