SC gov asks judge to OK wife’s divorce request, admits to having an affair in response

SC gov asks judge to OK wife’s divorce request

CHARLESTON, S.C. — South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford has asked a judge to approve his wife’s petition to end their 20-year-marriage, admitting he had an affair.

In a one-page response filed Friday in Charleston County, the governor admits to allegations of adultery made by his wife, Jenny, in the divorce petition filed last month. Sanford submitted the response on his own, without an attorney.

Jenny Sanford said the couple had been unable to reconcile after her husband returned from a mysterious disappearance in June to reveal a yearlong affair with an Argentine woman.

The divorce petition said the couple would present an agreement to a judge for ending the marriage. A final hearing is set for next month.