Just as Roy Cooper steps into the national spotlight with a new Senate run in North Carolina, questions about his personal life are suddenly coming to light—questions that, until now, had been quietly brushed under the rug.
The former governor, now 68, has long been seen as one of the Democratic Party’s cleanest and safest bets.
He was even floated as a possible presidential candidate and was reportedly on the shortlist to be Kamala Harris’s running mate in 2024.
But while his public image has always been one of steady leadership and low drama, his private life tells a different story.
A “Secret” Divorce and a Second Marriage That Overlapped
Daily Mail has revealed that Cooper was once married to his college sweetheart, Georganne Rice—a fact many in North Carolina political circles never even knew.
Even more surprising? The quiet way that marriage ended and how quickly his second one began.
According to Georganne, the unraveling started when Cooper, then a young attorney, abruptly decided to run for office.
“He came home one day and told me he’d signed up to run for state representative,” she said.
“We never even discussed it. I wanted a family, not a political campaign.”
The couple had married just after her graduation from the University of North Carolina in 1981.
But by the time Cooper’s campaign picked up steam in the mid-1980s, the marriage was already falling apart.
“I still went to campaign events for him so people wouldn’t know we’d split,” she said. “But I told him—if you win, we’re done.”
Cooper’s First Wife Breaks Her Silence
Georganne said she was never bitter about the breakup itself, but rather the way it’s been buried.
“I had people texting me last year when he was being talked about as a VP pick, asking, ‘Do you think he’ll ever mention that you two were married for five years?’” she said.
“It’s just kind of crappy, to be honest.”
Cooper never publicly acknowledged his first marriage, and the only known reference is a brief wedding announcement published back in 1981.
Enter Kristin: The Second Love Story With a Complicated Timeline
Cooper later married Kristin Bernhardt, now 69. But their love story, too, has layers.
According to a 1997 interview with the News & Observer, they met in the late 1980s while both were working on legislation related to car salvage laws in the North Carolina General Assembly.
Records show that Kristin was still legally married at the time—to Army doctor George Godette.
In fact, she and Cooper reportedly began dating during the 1989 legislative session, the same year she filed for divorce.
That divorce wasn’t finalized until 1991, and Cooper married her less than a year later, in March 1992.
Divorce Papers and Legal Drama
Court documents from Kristin’s divorce include tense exchanges over alimony, custody, and questions about fidelity.
One particularly pointed question from her lawyer asked George directly whether he had slept with anyone else during the marriage.
His legal team responded that the question was “irrelevant and constitutionally privileged.”
According to filings, Kristin and her then-husband separated sometime between late 1987 and early 1988—well before she and Cooper became official, but still legally bound by marriage.
In the end, Kristin was granted primary custody of their daughter, Hilary.
Her ex-husband, Dr. Godette, received limited visitation—just 14 days a year.
Cooper’s Relationship With His Stepdaughter
Cooper seems to have formed a strong bond with Kristin’s daughter.
In 2011, when Hilary was 26 years old, she officially filed for adoption, making Cooper her legal father.
Neither Cooper nor Kristin’s ex-husband responded to requests for comment regarding the timeline of events.
A Career Marked by Quiet Success—Until Now
Roy Cooper went on to build a political career spanning decades.
He served as a state senator, spent 16 years as North Carolina’s attorney general, and held the governor’s office from 2017 to 2025.
He recently announced he’s running for the U.S. Senate in 2026, aiming to claim the seat being vacated by retiring Republican Thom Tillis.
It’s a high-stakes race, and one that could determine control of the Senate.
Why the Timing Could Stir Controversy in North Carolina
North Carolina isn’t new to scandals involving candidates’ personal lives.
In 2020, Democrat Cal Cunningham lost his Senate race to Tillis after it was revealed he was having an affair—with the wife of an Army veteran.
That scandal, paired with the fact that Cooper’s now-wife was also married to a military man when their relationship began, could raise eyebrows in a state with a large veteran population.
While nothing illegal occurred, the optics of the situation—especially with Cooper’s previous marriage having been kept so quiet—may give critics something to latch onto.
A Clean Image Now Under the Microscope
For years, Roy Cooper has been praised for avoiding controversy.
A 2020 profile in The New Republic even called him “the living, breathing antonym of scandal.”
But this chapter from his past paints a more complex picture.
As he shifts from the governor’s mansion to a heated Senate race, Cooper may find that what was once private no longer stays that way—especially when voters want transparency and trust.
