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Sylvia Leister, October 29, 2021
Everyone knows that American politics are not perfect. Whether it be party systems creating a divide in the American people, Democrat or Republican media twisting news to fit their own agenda, or the topic of this article, election scandals. America has a rich history of Presidential election scandals, but some lesser-known ones are lurking below the surface...
In any American History class, Watergate is sure to be brought up. Taking place from 1972-1974, Watergate is one of the most well-known scandals in American history. Performed by President Richard Nixon and his cabinet, it was a cover-up for a break-in at a Democratic National Committee office. The break-in was used to find dirt on opposing politicians and other opposition in the path to Richard Nixon's election. Nixon refused to release voice-activated tapes from the Oval Office because he knew they would incriminate him. Nixon was impeached and later stepped down before he could be kicked out of office. The population and many government officials believed it to be so scandalous because it went against all of the values of the American people and politicians.
The Teapot Dome scandal, from 1921-1923, was the first scandal to send a cabinet secretary to prison because of their actions on the job. Warren G. Harding's Secretary of the Interior, Albert Fall, secretly accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in exchange for leasing former Navy oil reserves to a private company. This was a huge scandal, and caused the entire administration to crumple right out of the election. As soon as it had started it had been reduced to ash, and Harding became associated with corruption.
When president Rutherford B. Hayes was elected in 1876, the electoral college vote was 185 to 184 in the Democrat elects favor. There were many threats and charges of corruption, with taut nerves the entire year. Backroom debates were held where troops were withdrawn from the south, creating a major setback in civil rights and the rights of former slaves. This scandal was extremely bad for minorities in the late 1800s.
Not every election has been 100%percent fair and square. If we are being honest, there has not been a perfectly fair election since the perfect election of George Washington, in which there was no competition. Yet still, democracy is a better form of government compared to other forms America could have and some politicians are not corrupt.
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