John Edwards admits extramarital affair, denies fathering child
The woman involved reportedly did video production work for John Edwards' presidential campaign. He says the affair took place while his wife was battling cancer.
WASHINGTON — Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards on Friday admitted to an extramarital affair with a 42-year-old woman while his wife was battling cancer. He denied fathering the woman's daughter.
Edwards told ABC News that he lied repeatedly about the affair but said that he didn't love the woman. He said he has not taken a paternity test but knows he isn't the father of her child because of the timing of the affair and the birth.
ABC said former Edwards campaign staffer Andrew Young says he is the father, not Edwards.
Hunter's daughter, Frances Quinn Hunter, was born Feb. 27, 2008, and no father's name is given on the birth certificate filed in California.
Three weeks ago, the National Enquirer said its reporters caught Edwards visiting Hunter at a California hotel. In the interview, scheduled to air on ABC News' "Nightline," Edwards said the tabloid was correct when it reported on his meeting with Hunter at the Beverly Hills Hotel last month.
Edwards was a top contender for the Democratic nomination for president, pursuing his party's nod even after announcing that his wife, Elizabeth, had a deadly form of cancer.
He placed second in the Iowa caucuses in January but dropped out of the race a few weeks later. He has been mentioned as a possible vice presidential choice for Barack Obama. The former North Carolina senator was the Democratic nominee for vice president in 2004.
David Bonior, Edwards' campaign manager for his 2008 presidential bid, said today he was disappointed and angry after hearing about Edwards' confession.
"Thousands of friends of the senator's and his supporters have put their faith and confidence in him and he's let him down," said Bonior, a former congressman from Michigan. "They've been betrayed by his action."
Asked whether the affair would damage Edwards' future aspirations in public service, Bonior replied: "You can't lie in politics and expect to have people's confidence."
In 2006, Edwards' political action committee paid $100,000 in a four-month span to a newly formed firm run by Rielle Hunter, who directed the production of just four Web videos, one a mere 2 1/2 minutes long.
