Democrat Steven Horsford at Odds with Wife On Reelection Bid After Having 'Long-Standing Affair'

Nevada Democrat Rep. Steven Horsford appears to be at odds with his wife now that he is running for reelection after admitting in 2020 to having a “long-standing affair” with a former Congressional intern for former Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV).

In a series of social media posts over the weekend, Horsford’s wife, Dr. Sonya Douglass, said she would “not be silent” this election season after she claims to have been silent over the past two years — while she suffers from the congressman admitting to the affair with Gabriela Linder, the former Reid intern and podcaster.

“I have remained silent for nearly two years and want it to be clear that I am not enjoying the pain that my children and I continue to suffer,” she wrote.

“@StevenHorsford told me the day after Mother’s Day about his 10-year affair AFTER already speaking to his staff and attorneys,” Douglass wrote, claiming that she was not in the loop and was only told of the affair by her husband of nearly 20 years after everyone he works for found out. 

In one post she appeared to be at odds with Horsford about running for reelection instead of retiring from the House and allowing his family to recover from what happened two years ago. “And that he would choose to file for re-election and force us to endure yet another season of living through the sordid details of the #horsfordaffair with #mistressforcongress rather than granting us the time and space to heal as a family.”

“We did not ask to be put in public life and were simply supporting @StevenHorsford because that’s what we understood family to be and do,” she wrote, appearing to plead her case to be left alone. “We just want to heal and live the amazing lives we’ve been destined to live, free of lies, manipulation, and unbridled ambition.”

In 2020, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that Horsford acknowledged the “long-standing affair” with Linder, who detailed her relationship with Horsford in a podcast series — Mistress for Congress — and released screenshots of their messages on Twitter.

At the time, Horsford, acknowledging the affair, released a statement from his congressional office stating, “It is true that I had a previous relationship outside of my marriage, over the course of several years.”

“I’m deeply sorry to all of those who have been impacted by this very poor decision, most importantly my wife and family. Out of concern for my family during this challenging time, I ask that our privacy is respected,” he continued.

Horsford, who is married and has three children, began the affair in 2009, and it occasionally continued throughout the years until it ended in 2019. When the two met in 2009, Horsford was a 36-year-old state senator, and Linder was a 21-year-old college intern for Reid, who was the Senate Majority Leader.

The House Republican campaign arm, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), released a statement saying the congressman should listen to his wife. NRCC Spokeswoman Torunn Sinclair stated, “Steven Horsford should listen to his wife and end his campaign.”

Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter.

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