A juicy scandal in the middle of an election campaign can be political peril, and both main B.C. party leaders found themselves on the ropes doing damage control on more than one occasion during the 28-day push to the polls.

Arguably the biggest surprise was the resignation of Solicitor General John van Dongen. The public safety minister and Liberal incumbent in his Abbotsford riding stepped down from his post after admitting his driver's licence was suspended for having too many speeding tickets.

Van Dongen admitted to CTV News he "wasn't sure" how many tickets he actually had received for his licence to be yanked. In his former role as top cop, van Dongen headed up the province's car insurance agency ICBC as well as spearheading several government safe-driving campaigns.

Van Dongen's vehicular snafu also brought to light the driving record of other Liberal candidates, including Victoria-Swan Lake's Jesse McClinton, who confessed to being charged with drinking and driving in 2006.

"Hopefully people will forgive me,'' McClinton told CTV.

"It's definitely a mistake that I made and I'd like to move forward from it."

Vancouver-West End Liberal candidate Laura McDiarmid was also slammed for her driving record.

McDiarmid, who is also a professional limousine driver, racked up more than 30 driving infractions in the past decade, something she partially blamed on "time constraints."

And what would an election campaign be without embarrassing pictures?

The rookie NDP candidate for Vancouver-False Creek was literally caught with his pants down when racy photos from his personal Facebook site were made public.

Ray Lam stepped down after the pictures, including ones showing him grabbing a woman's chest and another with people clutching at his underwear, were thrust into the public spotlight.

NDP Leader Carole James spoke out over the resignation, saying Lam showed "a lack of judgment" when he allowed risqué photos of him to be posted on a social networking site.

It all comes out in the wash

The messy divorce of a Vancouver Island MLA made headlines when allegations surfaced about spousal abuse. The allegations against North Cowichan-Nanaimo NDP MLA Doug Routley stem from incidents in 2006 and 2007 that were investigated by police in December. No charges were laid in the investigation.

Liberal candidate Marc Dalton had to apologize for a remark he made about homosexuals in a 1996 email. Dalton, who represents Maple Ridge-Mission, suggested homosexuality is a lifestyle choice comparable to adultery, gambling and pornography.

Earlier this week, public documents obtained by CTV News detailed a troubled history for B.C. Conservative Party candidate Gurcharan Dhaliwal.

In February 2004, Dhaliwal was convicted of drug possession for the purpose of trafficking, receiving a one-year conditional sentence and a 10-year firearms prohibition.

And the controversy didn't stop in the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island.

Kootenay Liberal Bill Bennett was accused of offending aboriginals for placing an ad saying voters support people who pay taxes.

Liberal Leader Gordon Campbell answered the controversies on the defensive, saying he hoped they would not interfere with the May 12 election.

"Everybody makes mistakes in their lives and I think the critical thing is to stand up and be accountable for them," Campbell said.