She’s currently the U.S. Ambassador to Greece. Before that, she was the "firebrand" of the MAGA movement, often seen standing beside Donald Trump Jr. at rallies that looked more like rock concerts than political events. But if you rewind the tape about twenty years, you’ll find a completely different version of Kimberly Guilfoyle. Back then, she was the liberal-leaning First Lady of San Francisco, married to a rising Democratic star named Gavin Newsom.
The transformation is jarring. It’s the kind of political 180-degree turn that makes people scratch their heads and wonder if they’re looking at the same person. Honestly, the story of Gavin Newsom's ex-wife is way more than just a footnote in a biography; it’s a bizarre roadmap of how American politics became so polarized.
The "New Kennedys" of San Francisco
They were young. They were wealthy. They were incredibly good-looking.
In the early 2000s, the San Francisco social scene was obsessed with them. When Gavin Newsom and Kimberly Guilfoyle tied the knot in 2001, it wasn't just a wedding; it was a coronation. She was a powerhouse prosecutor who had just helped win a massive, high-profile dog-mauling case that gripped the city. He was the golden boy on the Board of Supervisors.
The media couldn't get enough of them. Harper’s Bazaar famously did a spread on the couple, calling them the "New Kennedys." There’s a photo from that shoot—which has since become legendary for all the wrong reasons—showing the two of them sprawled out on a rug in the Getty mansion. It was peak glamour. It was also, as it turns out, the beginning of the end.
Why the Marriage Really Collapsed
People love to look for a "villain" in a divorce.
With Gavin Newsom and Kimberly Guilfoyle, the truth was a bit more mundane, though no less difficult. Basically, it came down to geography. Not long after Newsom was elected Mayor of San Francisco in 2003, Guilfoyle landed a dream job in New York City. She was hired as a legal analyst for Court TV and later ABC News.
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Suddenly, the "First Lady of San Francisco" wasn't actually in San Francisco.
The Transcontinental Strain
Newsom stayed in California to run a major city. Guilfoyle stayed in New York to chase the bright lights of national television. In a 2005 interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, Newsom admitted that the distance had "taken a huge toll personally." He called the transcontinental marriage "tough."
They officially filed for divorce in January 2005, citing the classic "irreconcilable differences." There was no public screaming match. No tabloid-ready cheating scandal (though Newsom’s later affair with his appointments secretary, Ruby Rippey-Tourk, would become a different kind of scandal).
At the time, they issued a joint statement saying they remained close friends. And oddly enough, in 2026, reports suggest that might actually still be true.
The MAGA Pivot: From Blue to Bright Red
If you only know Kimberly Guilfoyle from her viral, high-volume speech at the 2020 Republican National Convention, it's hard to reconcile that person with the woman who once campaigned for a liberal San Francisco mayor.
After her divorce from Newsom was finalized in 2006, she married Eric Villency, the CEO of a luxury furniture company. They had a son together, Ronan, but divorced in 2009. Somewhere in the midst of her 12-year stint at Fox News—where she co-hosted The Five—her politics didn't just shift; they crystallized.
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She became one of the most vocal supporters of Donald Trump.
The Don Jr. Era
In 2018, she started dating Donald Trump Jr. This wasn't just a relationship; it was a political merger. She left Fox News under a cloud of controversy—reports later surfaced of a $4 million settlement paid to an assistant over sexual harassment allegations—and leaned fully into the Trump campaign world.
She and Don Jr. were the "power couple" of the MAGA circuit for years. They got engaged on New Year's Eve in 2020, but the wedding never happened. By late 2024, the engagement was off. Shortly after, President Trump appointed her as the U.S. Ambassador to Greece.
The 2026 Reality: Ambassadorship and "Transactional" Friendship
Here is the part that usually surprises people. Despite being on opposite ends of the most bitter political divide in American history, Gavin Newsom's ex-wife and the Governor of California apparently still talk.
In early 2025, The Hollywood Reporter and PEOPLE broke stories claiming that Newsom had been consulting Guilfoyle for help with his own political "rebrand." Insiders described their relationship as "transactional" but professional. She allegedly helped him secure interviews with right-wing media figures to help him reach across the aisle.
Just recently, in late 2025, Guilfoyle was seen joking with the President of Greece about her 2004 honeymoon in the country with Newsom. She called the honeymoon "fabulous" but joked, "We'll work on getting a new husband."
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It’s a weirdly human moment in a life that has been so thoroughly politicized.
What You Should Know About Kimberly Guilfoyle Today
- Current Role: U.S. Ambassador to Greece (Confirmed Sept 2025).
- Political Identity: High-ranking Republican fundraiser and surrogate.
- Relationship Status: Single (following the split from Donald Trump Jr. in late 2024).
- Legacy: One of the few people to have been a "First Lady" in both the most liberal and most conservative circles of American power.
Practical Insights: Navigating the Noise
When you’re looking up information about someone as polarizing as Kimberly Guilfoyle, you have to cut through a lot of bias.
If you read a "Blue" source, she's a traitor to her roots. If you read a "Red" source, she's a patriot who saw the light. The reality is likely more complex—a woman whose personal ambition and career path took her from the courtroom to the newsroom to the embassy.
Next Steps for Research:
- Check the official U.S. Embassy in Greece website for her current diplomatic initiatives.
- Look for the 2004 Harper’s Bazaar archives if you want to see the "New Kennedys" era for yourself.
- Compare her 2020 and 2024 RNC speeches to see the evolution of her public persona.
Understanding the history of Gavin Newsom's ex-wife isn't just about celebrity gossip. It's about seeing how the political landscape of the last twenty years has changed, and how some people are able to navigate both sides of the fence, even if they choose to stand firmly on one.