A Republican Wyoming state senator told a local newspaper that he got a 14-year-old girl pregnant when he was 18-years-old.
Anthony Bouchard, the state senator running against US Rep. Liz Cheney, first referenced the incident during a Facebook Live stream on Thursday. After learning that a ” political opposition research company” and an unnamed reporter were investigating him, he chose to discuss his past.
Bouchard told the Casper Star-Tribune newspaper he married the girl after she turned 15. The couple was able to get married under Florida law that allowed a judge to approve the marriage if a pregnancy was involved and a parent consented to the marriage.
The law was banned in 2018, CNN reported.
“It was a story when I was young, two teenagers, girl gets pregnant, you’ve heard those stories before,” he said in the Facebook Live video. “She was a little younger than me, so it’s like Romeo and Juliet story. A lot of pressure, pressure to abort a baby. I’m going to tell you. I wasn’t going to do it.”
During the live stream, Bouchard told listeners that he’s since “almost become” estranged from his son but said, “I still love him.”
The couple divorced three years after getting married. Bouchard’s ex-wife killed herself when she was 20.
Despite the revelation, Bouchard still plans on running for office.
“Bring it on,” he said in the Facebook Live video. “I’m going to stay in this race. We’re going to continue to raise money because my record stands on its own.”
