A rising Republican star who is widely expected to serve as Donald Trump's running mate should he win the nomination has been having an affair for years, according to reports. Kristi Noem, the married Republican governor of South Dakota, has been having an affair with Corey Lewandowski for years, according to multiple sources.
While there are no known images capturing intimate moments between the two, sources noted that they have not been particularly discreet about their relationship. One source told the New York Post that he vividly remembered seeing the two kissing at a hotel bar during the 2021 Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida.
Secret Affair
The revelation of this relationship is now posing a significant threat to Noem's prospects of being chosen as Trump's running mate in a potential rematch against President Joe Biden.
The witness remembers Noem and Lewandowski getting "handsy" at the Hyatt Regency Orlando's bar while there were between 100 and 200 other people present. "I remember it was so absurdly blatant and public," the person claimed.
"It wasn't like 2 a.m.," the source said. "It isn't like we caught them at some dive bar miles away. It's a lobby bar where everyone is staying and so there's a bajillion political operatives and journalists and electeds around. I remember I saw it with my own eyes and a couple other people saw it and the blatantness was absurd."
"This has been a known, open thing and we've all been waiting for it to blow up at some point," the person added.
The affair came to light just a week after Noem, a mother of three, publicly endorsed the 77-year-old Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. This endorsement heightened speculation that Trump, the 45th president, might select her as his running mate.
"He's 100% banging her," said a second person familiar with the relationship between Noem and Lewandowski, first reported by DailyMail.com.
The source went on to say that they had personally seen Noem "playing grab-ass" and "sitting on his [Lewandowski's] lap" at a gathering at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in December 2020.
"The usual stuff that drunk people who are having affairs do," the person said of the interaction.
Another person who saw the couple at Mar-a-Lago on the same date verified, "I saw her on his lap."
"I thought they were a couple. They all over each other," said the source who had previously met Lewandowski but was unfamiliar with Noem—whom the witness remembered as being otherwise "so beautiful" and "poised."
A fourth source told the outlet that the relationship had been well-known in Republican political circles for "years," and that Noem's spouse Bryon had reportedly left the governor's mansion in Pierre about two years prior.
A Lot Happened Discreetly
Bryon Noem is the owner of an insurance company bearing his name in Bryant, South Dakota, a few hours' drive from the state capital. The specifics of his present living arrangements are unknown.
Yet another source told the outlet that he and other GOP insiders were "well aware" of the affair and said the news was eventually reported because of "one of her competitors for VP."
Trump and various political commentators have openly speculated for months about potential running mates.
Some of the names mentioned in these discussions include Noem, former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, ex-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), former ambassador to Germany Ric Grenell, House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY), ongoing GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, and staunch conservative Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.).
At one point, Noem was seen as a possible contender for the 2024 election. However, she chose not to enter the race, expressing her belief to Fox News last month that no Republican stood a chance at winning the nomination as long as Trump was a candidate.
"Why run if you can't win?" she asked.
On September 8, during a rally in Rapid City, Noem publicly declared her support for Trump, referring to him as "the fighter that our country needs."
"You made America great again once, let's do it again," Noem said while introducing the former president. "I will do everything I can to help him win and save this country."
Lewandowski, 49, served as Trump's inaugural campaign manager in 2016 and was widely acknowledged for orchestrating Trump's win in the 2016 New Hampshire primary. This victory was instrumental in bolstering the real estate tycoon's campaign following a defeat to Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in the Iowa caucuses.
However, Lewandowski's prominence began to decline after he was accused of manhandling Breitbart reporter Michelle Fields subsequent to a Trump press conference in March 2016. He faced a charge of simple battery, which was ultimately dropped.
Lewandowski's tenure with the Trump campaign ended three months later, reportedly due to conflicts with then-campaign chairman Paul Manafort.
Despite leaving the campaign, Lewandowski maintained a close relationship with Trump during his private life. As outlined in former special counsel Robert Mueller's report on the Russia investigation, on June 19, 2017, Trump, who hails from Massachusetts, called upon Lewandowski to the Oval Office.
During this meeting, Trump instructed Lewandowski to convey a message to then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions, urging Sessions to publicly criticize the investigation and direct Mueller to narrow the scope of the probe to focus solely on future foreign interference in US elections.
