WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards and his cancer-stricken wife, Elizabeth, have separated following reports that he fathered a child with a woman who was a former campaign aide.
A source familiar with the situation confirmed on Wednesday that the Edwards, who live in North Carolina, had split up. They have been married 32 years.
Edwards, 56, unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008 and was the party’s vice presidential nominee in 2004 in John Kerry’s failed bid for the White House.
A statement from Elizabeth Edwards’ publicist at Random House, which published her book last year, “Resilience,” said Elizabeth Edwards, 60, “is moving on with her life and wants to put this difficult chapter behind her.”