One of the most damaging scandals of Gavin Newsom’s political career is about to return to the national spotlight at a time when many expect the California governor to begin positioning himself for a run for the White House.Nearly two decades after the controversy first erupted, one of the central figures who has largely remained silent is now going public with her side of the story for the first time.
Newsom’s office is once again attempting to close the book on the governor’s well-documented extramarital affair, offering a terse response after his former mistress published a new, highly detailed tell-all essay revisiting their illicit relationship nearly two decades later.
In a statement Tuesday, Newsom’s team said: “The governor acknowledged his role and publicly apologized for his conduct nearly two decades ago when he was still mayor. In the time since, he met his wife, started a family and has focused on serving Californians. He addressed this chapter of his life, including in his memoir, and out of respect for everyone involved, does not have anything further to add.”
The essay, published in Vanity Fair by Ruby Rippey (now Gibney), revisits the scandal that nearly derailed Newsom’s political career when he was San Francisco mayor.
Rippey, who worked as Newsom’s appointments secretary, describes how professional boundaries collapsed amid her struggles with alcohol and cocaine addiction.
She writes that she would scan his calendar for openings, appear at locations where he was expected, and wait for texts asking “Where are you?”
Encounters followed at his Russian Hill penthouse, a private room in a North Beach bar, and the W Hotel in Los Angeles.
Rippey portrays the relationship not as romance but as “another form of intoxication” fueled by proximity to power and the feeling of being chosen.
She details the first encounter after wearing a strapless white dress to a City Hall staffer’s wedding on July 2, 2005, and later passionate meetings, including one in which she ripped every button from Newsom’s shirt.
All encounters, she emphasizes, were consensual, even those she was too intoxicated to fully remember.
At the time, Rippey was married to Newsom’s close friend and top aide Alex Tourk, who was running the mayor’s re-election campaign.
Newsom himself had not yet finalized his divorce from Kimberly Guilfoyle, now the U.S. Ambassador to Greece.
Rippey entered rehab in May 2006 and ended the affair but did not confess to her husband until January 2007.
Tourk confronted Newsom, resigned, and the scandal exploded publicly.
Newsom held a somber press conference admitting, “Everything you’ve heard and read is true,” and apologizing for hurting “someone I care deeply about, Alex Tourk.”
The episode forced Newsom to seek alcohol treatment and nearly ended his rising political trajectory.
In his recent memoir, Newsom described it as “the stupidest and also briefest of affairs,” noting both were drinking too much.
Rippey now says she accepts responsibility for her choices while recognizing Newsom held greater power as her boss.
She remains sober, has remarried, and has even repaired relations enough to attend Tourk’s later wedding.
She also recalls then-San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris calling her after the news broke.
Newsom, who positions himself as a family man and progressive champion, betrayed a trusted friend and subordinate while holding public office.
The timing is notable, as Newsom is widely expected to pursue the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028 after reaching his term limit as California governor.
Political analyst David Latterman told The California Post it is difficult to predict the political impact without knowing what Rippey-Gibney plans to reveal.
“What would be really sad is if Democrats make a bigger deal out of this than Republicans for self-flagellation,” Latterman said.