Rep. Anthony Weiner Resigns After Sexting Scandal and Cover-Up

U.S. Representative Anthony Weiner (D-NY) announced his resignation from Congress effective June 23, 2011, after admitting he sent sexually explicit photos and messages to at least six women over three years through Twitter, Facebook, email, and phone—and then lied about it to the public and media. The scandal erupted on May 27, 2011, when a lewd photo showing a man’s bulging crotch in underwear briefly appeared on Weiner’s Twitter account before being deleted.

Weiner initially claimed a hacker had gained control of his Twitter account, calling it “a prank.” For over a week, he maintained the lie even as more evidence emerged of inappropriate online relationships with women. On June 6, 2011, at a contentious press conference, Weiner finally admitted the photo was of him and confessed to carrying on “inappropriate” conversations with six women over the prior three years, though he insisted he had never met any of them in person.

The scandal was particularly devastating because Weiner’s wife, Huma Abedin—a longtime top aide to Hillary Clinton—was pregnant with their first child when the scandal broke. The couple had married in July 2010 in a ceremony officiated by President Bill Clinton. Their son Jordan was born in December 2011. Despite Weiner’s initial claims that Abedin supported him, pressure from Democratic Party leaders including President Obama and Nancy Pelosi led to his resignation. The scandal demonstrated how personal misconduct and lying to the public could end a political career, though Weiner would later attempt comebacks and face even more serious sexting allegations involving a minor, resulting in his 2017 imprisonment.