On Same Day as Platner Bombshell, Another Dem Sex Scandal Explodes - Candidate Allegedly Shoved Hand Down Victim's Trousers, Fondled Him, and Worse

No political party has a monopoly on personal scandal, but Democrats are facing a troubling pattern as another candidate on the left finds himself under scrutiny over a serious allegation.

On Monday, the same day Maine Democratic Senate nominee Graham Platner’s campaign was rocked by a rape allegation, the San Francisco Chronicle published the results of its investigation into a 2020 allegation involving Manny Yekutiel, a San Francisco cafe owner and candidate for the city’s Board of Supervisors.

Yekutiel, a well-known figure in San Francisco Democratic politics, has been accused by LGBT activist Brad Chapin of sexual assault stemming from an alleged incident at a party in San Francisco’s Mission District in February 2020.

According to the Chronicle, the outlet first contacted Chapin in March and interviewed him several times. The paper also attempted to verify parts of his account independently, though it was unable to reach witnesses who reportedly attended the party.

On June 30, The San Francisco Standard published its own report on Chapin’s allegation and the potential political consequences for Yekutiel’s campaign.

According to the Standard, Chapin filed a police report in April. In that report, he accused Yekutiel of attacking him in a bedroom during the 2020 gathering. Chapin later said the encounter was unwanted and sexually demeaning.

In a contemporaneous text message, Chapin told a friend that “Manny just sexually assaulted me.”

Yekutiel has denied the allegation.

“These allegations are false. What is being described did not happen,” the statement read.

“When he reached out to me, I told him directly that it didn’t happen. He filed a police report, the police investigated, and took no further action. They said they didn’t even need to interview me.”

The allegation could carry real political consequences. Yekutiel has ties to major Democratic figures, including former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Kamala Harris. He is also viewed as an ally of San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie and has been described by The San Francisco Standard as “a fixture of San Francisco politics.”

Chapin, meanwhile, has political connections through an LGBT organization to Yekutiel’s main opponent in the race.

The Chronicle said it chose to publish its investigation after the Standard’s report placed Chapin’s allegation at the center of the supervisorial contest.

But the two reports appeared to emphasize different aspects of the story.

The San Francisco Standard reported that after filing the police report, Chapin met Yekutiel at a local park because he hoped to “find some way to forgive him and move past the incident.”

The Chronicle, however, reported that the park meeting followed a police-arranged “pretext call” and that Chapin wore a police-issued recording device during the encounter.

According to the Chronicle, a June 9 email from a police investigator described the case as “open” but “inactive.” In practical terms, authorities did not appear to have sufficient evidence at that stage to charge Yekutiel.

The Chronicle also published comments from Yekutiel that struck a more measured tone.

“I’m not here to attack or hurt anyone,” Yekutiel told the outlet. “I take this issue super seriously, but also I think in instances like this, especially with what’s being accused, I have to be completely clear that what is being described never went on and never happened.”

Yekutiel added that “anyone who comes forward deserves to be treated with dignity and respect. I won’t disparage Brad or question his character. But I know what’s true for me. And I understand the ugly reality of political campaigns today.”

The Chronicle also noted friendly social media exchanges between Yekutiel and Chapin after the alleged incident, as well as apparent inconsistencies in part of Chapin’s account.

At this point, the public record does not allow anyone to say with certainty what happened at the 2020 party. Yekutiel denies the allegation, police have not charged him, and the case reportedly remains inactive.

Still, the political timing is significant. The allegation has emerged in the middle of a competitive San Francisco race, just as Democrats are already dealing with another scandal involving Platner in Maine.

Platner’s situation appears even more politically damaging. Jenny Racicot has publicly accused him of rape, and leading Democrats have reportedly treated the allegation as credible enough to call for him to leave the race. Platner has denied wrongdoing.

The same broader problem also surfaced earlier this year in California, where former Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell suspended his gubernatorial campaign after sexual assault allegations that he denied.

For a party that constantly lectures America about character, accountability, and moral leadership, Democrats are now facing uncomfortable questions inside their own ranks.

Yekutiel deserves due process. Platner deserves due process. Allegations must be examined carefully and fairly.

But voters also deserve honesty from the political class. They deserve to know whether powerful Democrats apply the same standards to their own candidates that they demand from everyone else.

Right now, the answer looks increasingly uncertain.