The 'October Surprise,' Explained: A History of Late-Campaign Scandals That Impacted Elections

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo: Getty (2)

“October surprises” have become an unseemly tradition in American politics, when some of candidates' biggest controversies come to light just as voters are preparing to cast their ballots.

With less than a month till Election Day, this year’s scandals have been minimal. On Oct. 2, Republican presidential nomineeDonald Trumpfaced criticism when a packet of evidence in his federal election interference case was unsealed. While itcontained damning allegations, it didn’t seem to damage his chances at the White House, leaving the door open for a more explosive October surprise to affect his or Democratic nomineeKamala Harris' campaigns in the final hour.

Last-minute campaign surprises are nothing new. Some quickly fade out of voters' memory while others tarnish the reputations of lawmakers for years to come. Below, a roundup of past headline-making October surprises — fromGeorge W. Bush’s DUI toHillary Clinton’s emails to some high-profile Senate candidates muddying the 2022 midterms — and how the candidates impacted fared in their elections.

Nathan Posner/Shutterstock

October 2022: Herschel Walker’s Son Speaks Out After Abortion Allegations Surface

The Daily Beast reported the allegation in October 2022 that Georgia’s Republican Senate candidateHerschel Walker, who was outspokenly anti-choice, paid for a woman to abort his child back in 2009 — a claim hevehemently denied, telling Fox News' Sean Hannity that he had “no idea” who the woman making the accusation was. The Beast quickly followed up with a new report alleging that not only did Walker know the woman, hehas a child with her.

The story sparked backlash not just from political pundits, but from Walker’s own son, right-wing social media personalityChristian Walker, who posted aseries of tweetsand videos suggesting his father should not be trusted.

“I know my mom and I would really appreciate if my father Herschel Walker stopped lying and making a mockery of us,” Christian wrote onTwitter. He continued the tirade against Walker, claiming, “You’re not a ‘family man’ when you left us to bang a bunch of women, threatened to kill us, and had us move over 6 times in 6 months running from your violence.”

Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty

October 2022: Dr. Oz Faces Claims About Cruel Experiments on Dogs

PEOPLE spoke with veterinarian Catherine Dell’Orto at the time, who said that within weeks of her start as a post-doctoral fellow in the research labs at Columbia’s Institute of Comparative Medicine in July 2001, she was horrified to witness the inhumane treatment of dogs in lab experiments over which Oz served in the role of “principal investigator” — including leaving dogs in pain and paralyzed for weeks, with no discernible research benefit, before they were euthanized or died.

According to Dell’Orto, other principal investigators went into the lab to directly oversee their animals' care, but with Oz, she said, “There were no endpoints. What I saw was abuse.”

President Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan.Kamil Krzaczynski/Getty Images

October 2016: A Trump Interview with Access Hollywood Leaks

The fallout was immense for some — but not necessarily Trump. The other person featured in the video — formerAccess Hollywoodhost Billy Bush, the nephew of George W. — was fired from his job as an anchor onTodayas a result of the tape. He later made his television return on the showExtra.

Trump later apologized, and another October surprise swooped in to take off some of the pressure.

Gene J. Puskar/AP; Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.

October 2016: The FBI Opens an Investigation into Hillary Clinton’s Handling of Emails

FBI DirectorJames Comeydelivered a devastating blow to Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign just 11 days before the 2016 election, writing aletter to Congressdeclaring that a newly discovered cache of emails (found during an investigation intoRep. Anthony Weiner, who was at the time married to Clinton aideHuma Abedin) “appear[ed] to be pertinent to the investigation” of Clinton’s private email server.

Comey’s announcement upended Clinton’s campaign at a crucial time and, only 36 hours before Election Day, Comey announced there was nothing new in the batch of emails and that the FBI would not seek charges against the Democratic nominee.

The damage, however, had been done.

“Well, great. Too little, too late,” Clinton wrote in her 2017 memoir,What Happened. “The rest is history.”

Clinton would go on to lose the election to Republican opponent Donald Trump.

Sen. Mitt Romney.Rick Bowmer/AP/Shutterstock

October 2012: In Leaked Footage, Mitt Romney Talks About the 47%

Republican presidential nomineeMitt Romney’s campaign suffered when leaked footage — taken at a$50,000 per plate fundraiserin Florida — showed him saying that his job “is not to worry” about the 47% of people who would vote for his then-rival, Democratic incumbentBarack Obama, “no matter what.”

“I’ll never convince them that they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives,” Romney said.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.

Romney would go on to lose to Obama, who later said of the video: “I also believe that when he said behind closed doors that 47 percent of the country consider themselves victims who abuse personal responsibility,“Politico reported.

Obama continued: “Think about who he was talking about: folks on Social Security who’ve worked all their lives, veterans who’ve sacrificed for this country, students who are out there trying to hopefully advance their own dreams but also this country’s dreams, soldiers who are overseas fighting for us right now, people who are out there working hard every day … and I want to fight for them, that’s what I’ve been doing for the last four years.”

George W. Bush.Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images

October 2000: Fox News Reports That George W. Bush Had Been Arrested for a DUI 24 Years Prior

Politico reports that Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Al Gore weretied in the pollsin the final weeks leading up to the election, when Fox News reported thatBush had been arrested for drunk driving in 1976.

Bush would go on to win despite the report — though he faced an uphill battle as he lost the popular vote and the race required a now-infamous recount.

Had Bush won those states, Rove wrote, he could have won the White House “without Florida.”

“Of the things I would redo in the 2000 election, making a timely announcement about Bush’s DUI would top the list,” he said.

source: people.com