NEWSRFK Jr.'s Explosive Scandal With Reporter Olivia Nuzzi Was 'Almost the End of His Marriage' to Cheryl Hines: He 'Did Not Want Another Divorce'
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. reportedly ‘made it up’ to his wife, Cheryl Hines, after a 2024 s----- scandal made headlines, as he ‘did not want another divorce.’
April 10 2026, Updated 8:29 p.m. ET
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s marriage to Cheryl Hines reportedly survived a s------ scandal due to his political aspirations.
RFK Jr., 72, made headlines in 2024 after New York magazine journalist Olivia Nuzzi was placed on leave over a "personal relationship with a former subject relevant to the 2024 campaign," widely believed to be the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
'Everthing Was Not Okay' After S----- Scandal
After the scandal hit headlines, it was 'a really bad time' for Cheryl Hines and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s marriage.
Though Hines, 60, and RFK Jr. presented a united front after the scandal, investigative reporter Isabel Vincent claimed their marriage came close to ending in her new book RFK, Jr.: The Fall and Rise, set to hit bookshelves on Tuesday, April 14.
"After the Olivia Nuzzi scandal, it was really played down, [as if] Cheryl Hines was in Europe and everything was okay. Everything was not okay. That was a really bad time," the biographer claimed, per an excerpt obtained by People.
RFK Jr. Didn't Want 'Another Divorce' Amid Political Aspirations
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. tried to 'make it up' to Cheryl Hines after being accused of having an affair with Olivia Nuzzi.
According to the author, RFK Jr. "tried to make it up" to Hines, whom he married in 2014, as he felt "he couldn't be in the presidential Cabinet and have another divorce."
"That would have been his second divorce [filing]. Maybe because he felt that a lot of his supporters were more traditional about marriage so he did not want to have another divorce. But that was... almost the end of their marriage," Vincent wrote.
- Cheryl Hines and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Cutest Moments Before Politician's 'Sexting' Scandal Was Exposed: Photos
- RFK Jr. and Cheryl Hines 'Fear the Revelations' Olivia Nuzzi Could Spill About Sexting Scandal as Couple 'Went Through Marital H---' Last Year
- Cheryl Hines Admits Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Sexting Scandal With Olivia Nuzzi 'Was a Lot' to Deal With: 'More Chaos'
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RFK Jr. and Cheryl Hines Are 'Somewhat Together'
Cheryl Hines and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are 'somewhat together,' according to investigative reporter Isabel Vincent.
RFK Jr. was married to Emily Ruth Black from 1982 to 1994. That same year, he married Mary Richardson Kennedy, though they divorced in 2010. She committed suicide two years later.
When it comes to RFK Jr. and Hine's current relationship dynamic, Vincent wrote, "From what I understood, they're somewhat together, but they're not always together. She's not accompanying him on every single thing he's doing."
Olivia Nuzzi Claimed RFK Jr. Wanted to Have a Baby With Her
Olivia Nuzzi claimed that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wanted to have a baby with her in her memoir.
Nuzzi, 33, spoke about her relationship with RFK Jr. in her book, American Canto, released in December 2025. She spilled several secrets about their relationship, claiming they fell in love and saw a future together.
"She said ‘I love you’ only after he said it first. He called her ‘Livvy’ and wrote her poems. He said he wanted her to have his baby. He promised to take a bullet for her," she wrote.
RFK Jr. has strongly denied her claims. "Mr. Kennedy only met Olivia Nuzzi once in his life for an interview she requested, which yielded a hit piece," his rep said in a statement. "The accusations about Robert Kennedy are categorically false and he will not participate in reporting on triple hearsay allegations made in a dispute between other people."
