John Edwards Extramarital Affair
John Edwards, a former United States (US) Senator from North Carolina, US, and a Democratic Party presidential candidate, admitted to an extramarital affair in August 2008.
The affair was initially reported in late-2007 by The National Enquirer, a U.S. supermarket tabloid newspaper, but was given little attention outside the tabloid press and political blogosphere. The Enquirer cited claims, from an anonymous source, that Edwards had engaged in an affair with Rielle Hunter, a filmmaker hired to work for his presidential campaign, with a child produced from the relationship. ABC News reported that Andrew Young, a member of Edwards' campaign team, stated that Edwards asked him to "Get a doctor to fake the DNA results ... and to steal a diaper from the baby so he could secretly do a DNA test to find out if this indeed his child."
The allegations, initially published in late-2007, were denied by both Edwards and Hunter. Young claimed paternity of Hunter's daughter, although no father is listed on the child's birth certificate, and Young has subsequently denied it.
In July 2008, several U.S. mainstream media news outlets cited the allegations in relation to Edwards' future political career, as well as in relation to his chances of being selected as a running mate in Barack Obama's 2008 presidential bid. Then, on August 7, 2008, Edwards admitted to ABC News correspondent, Bob Woodruff, that he did have an extended affair with Hunter, but denied that he was the father of Hunter's baby girl. Hunter's sister claimed that Edwards was the father and publicly asked Edwards to take a paternity test to determine whether the child was his.
On January 21, 2010, Edwards issued a statement admitting that he was the father of the child in question. After the admission from Edwards that he fathered a child with Hunter, Edwards' wife, Elizabeth Edwards, announced a separation from her husband, with an intention to file for divorce. On January 25, 2010, the existence of an explicit sex tape, featuring Edwards and Hunter, was publicly reported.
When Edwards first admitted to the affair, he stated that Elizabeth was in remission from breast cancer. However, it became clear that the affair was still ongoing, even after he and his wife made a joint announcement that her cancer had returned and was found to be incurable. Elizabeth Edwards died on December 7, 2010.
Read more about John Edwards Extramarital Affair: Rielle Hunter and The Edwards Campaign, Initial National Enquirer Allegations, Hotel Encounter With Reporters, Birth Certificate, Payments To Hunter and Young, Reactions, Alleged Campaign Staffers "doomsday" Plan, Subsequent Events
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