Politics
John McCain: The Accidental Polygamist?
By Jonas Oliver

Jul 12, 2008

John and Cindy McCain have been married for nearly thirty years, but the Los Angeles Times is now reporting that Sen. McCain may have still been married to his first wife, Carol McCain, when he sought a marriage license to wed his current wife.  

According to the newspaper, court documents show that Arizona Senator John McCain may have received a license to marry his second wife about a month before a judge granted his divorce from first wife Carol McCain in April, 1980.  

The report contradicts McCain's account from his 2002 memoir Worth Fighting For, in which he said he divorced Carol McCain in February, 1980.  

McCain has always been candid about the fact that though he was separated from his first wife when he began dating the then Cindy Lou Hensley, he was still legally married at the time.  

However, NYMag.com notes that in divorce papers the presumptive Republican presidential nominee stated he was still cohabitating with his first wife until January 7, 1980. However, McCain reportedly began dating the future Cindy McCain in April of 1979, which would mean he was having an affair while still living with his first wife.  

Sen. McCain’s decision to divorce Carol McCain and wed Cindy so quickly after the breakup of the marriage caused a rift between him and the Reagans who regarded Carol McCain highly.  

John and Cindy McCain have four children together. He and Carol had one daughter.