When women are accused of wrongdoing, "the fall from the pedestal is longer and harder," Dittmar said.
Some signs indicate political gender norms are changing, particularly since 2016, when Hillary Clinton's email controversy became a defining issue even as Trump faced multiple accusations of sexual misconduct.
On the left, voters are embracing unabashedly progressive candidates.
Darializa Avila Chevalier, a democratic socialist, toppled a senior Democratic incumbent despite scrutiny over deleted social media posts.
First-time candidate Kat Abughazaleh spent months worrying that someone would unearth her "middle school livejournal fanfic account."
She revealed she has narcolepsy, facing comments calling it a "TikTok illness."
"This is a serious, debilitating illness that I try to be transparent about because we have shitty disability rights in this country," she said.
"But I don't have a fucking Nazi tattoo. I can promise you, I've never raped anyone."
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Abughazaleh hopes the end of Platner's campaign will prompt the party to widen its search for "authentic" candidates beyond white men.
