CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA — Less than a week after admitting that he’d not only had an affair with former campaign videographer Rielle Hunter but also fathered a child with her, John Edwards has separated from his wife of 32 years.
A source confirmed the former U.S. Senator’s marital split to Reuters yesterday. According to a statement from Elizabeth Edwards’ publicist at Random House, she “is moving on with her life and wants to put this difficult chapter behind her.” (Random House published her book Resilience last year.)
The same day, Edwards’ sister-in-law, Nancy Anania, revealed to People that Elizabeth Edwards, 60, had reached her breaking point in the marriage. “She said, ‘I’ve had it. I can’t do this. I want my life back,'” Anania said.
According to People‘s new cover story, which comes out tomorrow, Elizabeth Edwards met Frances Quinn Hunter in December at a North Carolina hotel, in a visit that a mediatorpresided over.
Former Edwards aide Andrew Young, who reportedly helped Edwards hide the affair from the public, has authored a tell-all book The Politician, which comes out on Tuesday and promises an unflattering portrait of the former Senator. Young’s working relationship with Edward deteriorated after Frances Hunter’s birth.
The couple currently lives in separate residences. Elizabeth Edwards (née Anania), who has been treated for cancer on and off since 2004, reportedly has been considering divorce for a year and now intends to file for divorce after a one-year waiting period, which is mandatory in North Carolina.
John and Elizabeth Edwards married in 1977 and have had four children together. Their first son, Wade, died in a driving accident at age 17 in 1996. The couple’s other children are 27-year-old Cate, 11-year-old Emma Claire, and nine-year-old Jack.
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