Ruby Rippey’s Vanity Fair essay has revived scrutiny of a 20-year-old affair with Gavin Newsom. Advisers have chosen not to publicly dispute Rippey’s detailed account, echoing Newsom’s original response when the story first broke. Rippey accepts responsibility but highlights the power imbalance and personal consequences; her memoir is now being shopped to publishers as the episode reignites political questions ahead of a possible 2028 run.
Newsom’s Two-Decade-Old Affair Resurfaces; Team Declines To Contest Vanity Fair Account
Newsom’s scandal playbook: Don’t dispute it.
Ruby Rippey’s new Vanity Fair essay has renewed attention on a two-decade-old sexual relationship with Gavin Newsom from his years as San Francisco mayor. Rather than mount a public rebuttal, the governor’s advisers have again adopted a restrained, conciliatory posture—matching the approach Newsom took when the story first emerged.
Advisers Avoid Public Pushback
Senior aides and spokespeople have largely declined to challenge Rippey’s detailed account. Nathan Ballard, a longtime Newsom adviser who served as press secretary during the original controversy, emphasized respect for all parties and said he would not weigh in. In private conversations, staffers reportedly steered clear of disparaging comments about Rippey or her version of events.
Newsom’s Prior Admission And Current Response
When the San Francisco Chronicle first reported the affair nearly 20 years ago, Newsom publicly acknowledged it and said, "everything you've heard and read is true." This week, while on vacation with his family, Newsom did not directly address the Vanity Fair piece. Spokesperson Izzy Gardon reiterated that he "acknowledged his role and publicly apologized nearly two decades ago," noted his subsequent family life and public service, and said he had nothing further to add out of respect for those involved.
Rippey’s Account And Power Dynamics
Rippey—who was married at the time to Alex Tourk, a senior mayoral aide—accepts responsibility for the relationship but stresses that the dynamic was shaped by the hierarchical power imbalance between a mayor and a subordinate. She writes bluntly about her struggles with alcohol and cocaine and about the personal fallout the affair had on her marriage and life.
"Power does not need to coerce. It only needs to exist," Rippey writes. "The responsibility to hold the linen belongs to the one who holds it. That didn't happen. But I didn't stumble into the space left open — I saw a possibility and went for it."
The essay also includes specific anecdotes—such as Newsom's remarks about Rippey’s post-pregnancy weight loss and an alleged insult from Jennifer Siebel Newsom after the affair was revealed—that prompted immediate coverage across outlets, including rapid follow-ups from the New York Post.
Political Fallout And Memoir News
Newsom strategists have sought to frame the Vanity Fair piece as old news unlikely to change voter calculations, but one ally called the renewed attention "suboptimal" as the governor eyes a likely 2028 presidential run. Rippey’s representative, Dini von Mueffling, told POLITICO that Rippey has written a memoir "about many things, including healing," and that the manuscript is currently being shown to publishers.
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