No one likes politicians partying. But Finland PM Sanna Marin is paying a higher price than the men who did

Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin has been getting criticism after a video of her clubbing with friends went viral on the Internet. Even though Marin has insisted that she was just drunk and didn’t indulge in any illegal activity, the same folks that elected her are now intent on assassinating her character. 

Obviously, politicians partying often draws controversy as it makes the public feel that their leaders aren't setting a responsible character. Or, as in Marin's case, 'spending too much time on music festivals than ruling'. When it comes to Scandinavian and Nordic countries like Finland, Norway, Denmark, Iceland and the Netherlands, the chances of running into your country's top leader at the supermarket around the corner are very high. These are the countries where it's normal to find political representatives cycling to work or shopping at the same stores as the general public. At 36, it should hence be more normalised for Finland's PM to be going out with her friends, and partying. 

Earlier, in 2021, Marin had drawn controversy for partying, unknowingly, after coming in contact with a person who tested positive for Covid. But the current row is over a normal video of her just partying at a club.

Sexist double standards in politics are hardly new.

Male politicians have indulged in sleazy debauchery, racist makeup, and violation of Covid norms but a simple apology gains them redemption. Surely, someone like Boris Johnson had to resign partly because of ‘Partygate’ but at least, no one questioned his character. 

Meanwhile, here is Sanna Marin being treated like the shame of the nation for just a weekend stress-buster.

Here are five major accounts of controversial party behaviour that deserves more flak than Marin drinking and dancing the night away. 

Boris Johnson’s drunken shenanigans: British people have always held a fascination with alcohol, and disgraced former PM Boris Johnson would be the posterchild for British alcoholism, thanks to the scandal dubbed as ‘Partygate’. Based on photographs initially published in Daily Mirror (and later broadcast on ITV) in November 2021, the citizens of Britain saw their shabby-haired leader drinking merrily with Conservative Party staff members in 2020 and 2021, at times when the pandemic was at its height. 

With the general government rules prohibiting gatherings of more than two people (unless the gathering was necessary for work), Boris Johnson’s hypocrisy ultimately brought down his government. Still: no character assassination.

Justin Trudeau’s brownface Halloween: Some might call it genuine while others might feel it’s tokenistic but Canadian PM Justin Trudeau does try a lot to build cordial relations with his Sikh demographic. In this context, an old ‘brownface’ photo from a 2001 Arabian Nights-themed party did create a minor scandal. TIME Magazine published the photograph in 2019, mentioning that this was from the time when Trudeau served as a teacher at West Point Academy. 

The man who had also sported blackface back in high-school, immediately apologised for his actions, mentioning that he didn’t feel it was racist back then and that he should have known better. Most of his voter-base were ultimately not that bothered by the photo.

Donald Trump’s creepy flirting: The ex-American President with a plethora of controversies to his name, a much-publicised moment was when a 2005 video (featuring the infamous phrase ‘grab ‘em by the pu**y’) circulated right a month before the 2016 Presidential elections. The video was a behind-the-scenes bit recorded by the crew of the entertainment TV news program Access Hollywood as Trump was on his way to film an episode. 

Talking to the show’s then-host Billy Bush and then later traveling in a VIP bus, Trump was caught chatting about multiple women and his tactics to impress them. While he might think of himself as a Casanova, his flirtation skills can be regarded as sexual assault with a comment such as, “You know I'm automatically attracted to beautiful— I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. Just kiss. I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab 'em by the pu**y. You can do anything.” 

When the video resurfaced, Bush lost his job as a host on NBC’s Today show but it did little harm to Trump’s campaign who of course, went to the Oval Office later. The icing on the cake: at the Presidential debate, Melania Trump wore a Gucci pussy-bow dress, the relevance of which was not lost on anyone.   

Homophobic politician József Szájer caught in a gay orgy: József Szájer served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Hungary, representing the Fidesz party. Much like his political party’s agenda, he had been explicitly hostile to LGBTQIA+ rights but in a twist of irony, his downfall was triggered by his presence in a gay orgy!

Flouting Covid regulations and using illegal drugs, he was detailed by the Belgian Police in the middle of what was described as a ‘gay sex party’ in Brussels. Coming back to his home country, he was immediately made to resign from his position. Szájer eventually admitted to being one of the party’s attendees and the aftermath was bizarre to say the least. A rain gutter that he used to escape from the party now has a memorial plaque next to it while Italian street artist Laika has painted murals honouring him as a gay icon!

John F Kennedy’s presidential grooming: Marilyn Monroe wasn’t the only woman with whom former US Prez John F Kennedy had an extramarital affair. The youngest American to be elected President assumed office in his 40s, and indulged in sexual escapades with many other social figures as well as White House interns (some being as young as 19). The book Party like a President by Brian Abrams mentions an incident when Kennedy and his brother-in-law Peter Lawford offered a high dose of amyl nitrate (popularly known as ‘poppers’) to one such intern, who soon suffered a panic attack. 

Given the intense efforts of the White House security staff to keep Kennedy’s affairs secret, most of this information was revealed in the years following his death. But it still hasn’t affected his popularity, as is evident from multiple surveys. According to a survey by YouGov America, Kennedy is the most popular American President after Abraham Lincoln, with 35% of Americans having a “very favourable” opinion on him and 38% falling in the “somewhat favourable” category.

Coming back to Marin, does a night of partying look that bad now?