John Ensign
The Nevada senator admitted to having an affair with a former campaign staffer.
Dec. 14, 2009 — -- Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., admitted on June 16, 2009 in Las Vegas to having an extramarital affair with a woman on his campaign staff.
Ensign -- a rising Republican star who had been discussed as a possible 2012 presidential candidate -- subsequently resigned as leader of the Republican Policy Committee but has remained in the Senate.
Ensign's former mistress and her husband -- Cynthia and Doug Hampton -- reportedly sought an $8.5 million settlement from him before the affair became public.
The New York Times reported in October that while he was having an affair with Cynthia Hampton, Ensign had found a new job as a lobbyist, and new clients, for Doug Hampton. The Times also reported that $96,000 that Ensign's parents had given to the Hamptons was actually severance, and not just a tax-free gift as Ensign's lawyer had claimed in June.
