Kamala Harris told aide to keep quiet about affair with Gavin Newsom

By the Editorial Team · Thursday, July 30, 2026

Ruby Rippey, a former aide to Gavin Newsom, revealed she had an affair with him in the mid-2000s and claimed Kamala Harris advised her not to speak publicly about it at the time. The disclosure sheds new light on past political dynamics ahead of Newsom’s anticipated 2028 presidential run and raises questions about the handling of private scandals in political careers.

Kamala Harris advised a former aide to then-San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom not to speak publicly about an affair with the governor, the woman involved has claimed.

Ruby Rippey, who was Newsom’s appointments secretary in 2005, detailed the relationship and its aftermath in a recent essay, marking her first public account of the affair. Rippey said she was married at the time to Alex Tourk, a top aide to Newsom, and accused the governor of misrepresenting who disclosed the affair to her husband. While Newsom’s memoir states he “came clean” to Tourk, Rippey contends that she was the one who confessed.

The relationship between Rippey and Newsom, now 58 and widely anticipated to seek the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028, had significant political repercussions. At the time of the affair, Newsom was still finalizing his divorce from Kimberly Guilfoyle, the US ambassador to Greece, and publicly admitted to the misconduct after the scandal emerged.

Rippey described in her essay how the relationship began in 2004, with Newsom showing increased attention toward her. She recalled adopting certain styles, including wearing Chanel makeup and distinctive dresses, to attract his notice. The affair reportedly became physical about a year later during a wedding for a City Hall staffer. Rippey characterized the relationship as less about romance and more about proximity to power.

Following the revelation of the affair, Rippey said she confessed to her then-husband in 2007, after which he left her. It was during the fallout that Harris, then the San Francisco district attorney and later vice president, contacted Rippey and advised her to “just pause” before discussing the matter publicly. Rippey said she appreciated the counsel, especially as she was newly sober and struggling to process the situation at the time.

In early 2026, Rippey was informed by a former colleague that the affair would be mentioned in Newsom’s upcoming memoir. When she questioned whether the governor was truthful in his account, the colleague responded that “we all remember things differently.”

A spokesman for Newsom acknowledged the governor’s past misconduct and public apology nearly 20 years ago, emphasizing Newsom’s subsequent focus on his family and public service. Newsom married his current wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, in 2008, and they have four children.

Requests for comment were also made to Harris’s office.

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