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• Republican John Ensign is the junior Senator from Nevada. Ensign, a member of the Christian ministry Promise Keepers, signed the Federal Marriage Amendment Act in 2006, which would define marriage as "between one man and one woman."http://ensign.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Media.PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=f5dd1984-53ab-4a06-b30e-3bac87fc9ac8&Region_id=&Issue_id=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/06/16/john-ensign-affair-gop-se_n_216451.html

  On June 16, 2009, John Ensign held a press conference to publicly disclose an extramarital affair he had with a member of his staff, which began in December 2007.http://www.kvbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10547466http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/16/AR2009061602746.html The day after the press conference, Ensign resigned from his position as the leader of the Republican Policy Committee. He will, however, reportedly remain in the Senate.http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=7862240&page=1

  On July 9, 2009, it was reported that Ensign's parents gave the woman, Cindy Hampton, and her family several gifts of a total of $96,000 in April 2008. The parents said in a statement that the gifts were given out of concern for the family's wellbeing.http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/07/09/ensign.affair/

• Fast Facts:

  1. Born: March 25, 1958
  2. Birth place: Roseville, California
  3. Spouse: Darlene Ensign
  4. Party: Republican
  5. Assumed office: January 3, 2001
  6. Former profession: Veterinarian
  7. Alma mater: UNLV, Oregon State University and Colorado State University
  8. Senior Senator from Nevada: Harry Reid

• Early Life

  Born in California, Ensign's family moved to Nevada when he was a child. After becoming a veterinarian, Ensign opened a successful 24-hour animal hospital in Las Vegas in 1985. In 1994, Ensign ran for the U.S. House of Representatives representing Nevada's 1st Congressional District and narrowly defeated four-term incumbent Congressman James Bilbray.

• Extramarital Affair

  Ensign's wife reportedly knew about his affair and decided to stay with Ensign, stating: "I love my husband." It has been reported that Ensign decided to confess his affair because he was allegedly threatened with extortion.http://www.kvbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10547466http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/16/AR2009061602746.html

  The "other woman" is reportedly Cindy Hampton, whose husband Doug Hampton worked for the the senator.http://www.kvbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10547466

• Political Career

  In 1998, Ensign challenged incumbent Democratic Senator Harry Reid for the open U.S. Senate seat, but lost by less than 500 votes. However, Ensign ran again in 2000, and handily defeated his rival, attorney and talk show host Edward M. Bernstein. Ensign is an outspoken supporter of the Iraq War.

• John Ensign Quotes<ref>http://www.kvbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10547466</ref>

  "Last year I had an affair. I violated the vows of my marriage."

  "If there was ever anything I could take back in my life, this would be it."

  "I know I have deeply hurt and disappointed my wife Darlene, my children, my family, friends, my staff, and all those who believed in me."

• Related Pages on Mahalo

  U.S. Senate | Republican Party | 2008 Republican Convention | U.S. House of Representatives | John McCain | Nevada | Daniel Akaka | Harry Reid

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