U.S. voters soft on leaders' infidelity

LOS ANGELES, July 12 (UPI) -- U.S. elected officials caught in extramarital affairs don't suffer much voter backlash, under the right circumstances, The Christian Science Monitor reports.

Sen. David Vitter, R-La., has been out of public view since admitting his name and telephone number was among those published by a Washington escort agency that is under investigation.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has kept a high profile -- and been peppered with questions from the media -- after publicly admitting he had an affair with a TV reporter.

The bad behavior doesn't necessarily mean political suicide, said Mary Ellen Balchunis-Harris, a professor of political science at La Salle University in Philadelphia.

"Times have indeed changed," she said. "Americans have gotten over the fact that their politicians aren't perfect."

As a further example, after President Bill Clinton's extramarital affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky in 1998, his personal approval ratings reached their highest level of his presidency, the report said.

On the other hand, Vitter's opportunity to serve in Congress came when former Rep. Bob Livingston, R-La., resigned in 1998 -- two days after he publicly admitted to an extramarital affair.