E-Paper
US governor admits extramarital affair
The governor of the US state of South Carolina, who had been missing for a week, finally turned up on Wedensday and admitted to an affair with an Argentinian woman.
The governor of the US state of South Carolina, who had been missing for a week, finally turned up on Wedensday and admitted to an affair with an Argentinian woman.
Mark Sanford, a Republican, vanished on June 18 without telling either his family or staff where he was headed.
In a press conference after his return, Sanford said he went to Buenos Aires to end an affair with an Argentinian woman.
“The bottom line is this: I’ve been unfaithful to my wife,” Sanford said with tears in his eyes. “I hurt my wife, I hurt my boys.”
Sanford, once considered a potential presidential candidate, said he would resign as head of the Republican Party’s governors’ association.
But he gave no clues as to whether he would resign as governor of South Carolina.
Sanford said he had known the Argentinian woman, who was not named, for about eight years, but the affair began one year ago. His wife Jenna had known for about five months.
“Forgiveness is not an immediate process,” Sanford said.
He did not tell reporters whether his wife was seeking a divorce.
Sanford’s disappearance had attracted national media attention and sharp criticism from politicians in the state. The CNN on Tuesday interviewed Jenna Sanford who said she, too, did not know her husband’s whereabouts. “I am being a mom today. I have not heard from my husband,” said Jenna, who was not at her husband’s side on Wednesday.