Two Florida state senators on Tuesday publicly admitted to having an extramarital affair with each other.
Shortly before the Florida Legislature's 2018 session began, the two veteran lawmakers—Senate Minority Leader Oscar Braynon, a Democrat, and Sen. Anitere Flores, a Republican—issued a joint statement acknowledging their affair, the Sun Sentinel reported.
Both Braynon and Flores are married.
"As this 2018 session of the Florida Legislature gets underway, we do not want gossip and rumors to distract from the important business of the people," the lawmakers said in a joint statement. "That's why we are issuing this brief statement to acknowledge that our longtime friendship evolved to a level that we deeply regret."
"We have sought the forgiveness of our families, and also seek the forgiveness of our constituents and God," they added. "We ask everyone else to respect and provide our families the privacy that they deserve as we move past this to focus on the important work ahead."
Braynon and Flores' statement came after a website called floresbraynonaffair.com, which went live Tuesday, published videos taken from a hidden camera in April 2017 purporting to show them having an affair.
One video shows Flores entering Braynon's apartment, which is across the hall from her own apartment. Another video shows Flores leaving the next morning.
There is no information on the website describing who owns it, who operates it, or who supplied the videos, the Miami Herald noted.
Senate President Joe Negron (R.) opened Tuesday's legislative session by assuring listeners that the chamber has "zero tolerance" for sexual harassment in the wake of multiple sex scandals in Florida politics.
State Sen. Jack Latvala (R.) resigned on Dec. 20 after multiple allegations that he inappropriately touched female staffers for years and that he had offered to trade legislative support in return for sexual favors. State Sen. Jeff Clemens (D.) resigned in October after acknowledging an affair with a lobbyist.
The affair between Braynon and Flores was consensual.