Ruby Rippey Details Affair With Gavin Newsom in Vanity Fair

Former San Francisco City Hall aide Ruby Rippey published a personal essay in Vanity Fair on July 28, 2026, detailing her affair with Gavin Newsom during his tenure as mayor. The relationship began in July 2005 while Rippey was married to Newsom's campaign manager, Alex Tourk, and before Newsom had finalized his divorce from Kimberly Guilfoyle. Rippey describes the attraction as driven by intoxication and proximity to power rather than love, and she explicitly denies any coercion.

The affair ended after Rippey entered rehabilitation for cocaine addiction, and Newsom publicly confessed to the relationship in February 2007. Rippey's account includes a 2004 encounter where Newsom commented on her loss of pregnancy weight, which she characterized as uncalled-for.

Rippey also alleges that Kamala Harris, then the San Francisco District Attorney, advised her to remain silent and wait for a better perspective before speaking publicly or writing a memoir in the immediate aftermath of the 2007 scandal. Rippey describes this as the best advice she received, which led to her silence for nearly two decades.

A spokesperson for Governor Newsom stated the account is consistent with previous details, noting that Newsom apologized for the relationship nearly twenty years ago. These revelations emerge as Newsom and Harris are both considered potential Democratic contenders for the 2028 presidential election.