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John Edwards is admitting he had an affair with 44-year-old Rielle Hunter, after repeatedly shooting down reports of an extramarital relationship.

The National Enquirer first reported the affair in October 2007. Edwards blasted the story, saying: “The story is false, it’s completely untrue, it’s ridiculous.”

When a photo of Edwards with his reported love child appeared in The Enquirer recently—along with details of a rendez-vous between Edwards and the woman he describes in a new interview as his former mistress—Edwards dismissed that report as “tabloid trash.”

But in a shocking new interview with ABC News correspondent Bob Woodruff for an episode of Nightline to air Friday, Edwards confirms his affair with Hunter.

In the same interview, Edwards denies that he is the father of her 6-month-old daughter. He claims his affair with Hunter ended before the baby was born on Feb. 27, 2008.

He has not submitted to a paternity test.

Edwards’ former campaign aide Andrew Young publicly claimed paternity of Hunter’s baby in December, but he is not listed as the father on the child’s birth certificate.

Friends of Hunter told ABC News that Edwards first met Hunter at a bar in New York City in 2006. The aspiring actress/producer was paid $114,000 to produce documentary-style web videos for Edwards, despite her lack of experience.

To capture supposedly candid moments of the candidate, Hunter followed him on trips across the U.S. and to Africa.

Elizabeth, John Edwards’ wife—who has an incurable form of cancer—learned of the affair in 2006, the former presidential candidate told ABC.

In the new Nightline interview, Edwards denies that he paid off Hunter to keep quiet about their affair, although he could not say whether friends had paid her hush money.

Edwards confirms to ABC News that he met with her the blonde single mom in July at the Beverly Hilton Hotel – a rendez-vous first reported by The National Enquirer —and that his wife was not aware of the meeting.

He stressed that his wife’s cancer was in remission when he started the affair with Hunter. Edwards also said he was never in love with Hunter.

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