Who is Eliot Spitzer’s wife Roxana Girand? The real estate mogul began dating the former NYC governor after his multiple scandals and quietly married the ‘luv-guv’ in 2020

Aug 29 , 2024

Eliot Spitzer and Roxana Girand quietly married in 2020 after dating for three years. Photo: FilmMagic

Spitzer and Girand began dating in 2017 and got engaged in 2019; they called off their big wedding amid Covid lockdowns but recently revealed that they quietly married in 2020 anyway

Spitzer resigned as governor after he was embroiled in a 2008 prostitution scandal, then had an affair and divorced his wife in 2013, and was caught up in an extortion case in 2016

It’s notoriously hard to keep the details of a high-profile marriage under wraps, but it appears that former New York governor Eliot Spitzer and his partner Roxana Girand managed to do just that. Last month, Spitzer confirmed to Page Six that he and his real estate mogul girlfriend tied the knot in a secret wedding in 2020.

They may not be a Hollywood couple, but when the pair began dating in 2017, they were under heavy public scrutiny. After all, Spitzer’s love life had made headlines previously when he was involved in a prostitution scandal, cheated on his wife with a political strategist named Lis Smith, and was blackmailed by a Russian woman.

Former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer speaks during a primary debate for New York City comptroller in 2013. Photo: Reuters

So, who exactly is Girand – the woman who finally accepted Spitzer, warts and all? Here’s what you need to know about her.

She’s had to overlook Spitzer’s messy sex scandals

Roxana Girand quietly married Eliot Spitzer in 2020. Photo: @sebastiancapital/Instagram

When Girand and Spitzer were first romantically linked, their every move made headlines in the US tabloids. That’s because Spitzer had stepped down as New York’s governor in 2008 after being exposed as a regular patron of high-end call-girls. He even asked his official protection team to stop working so that the women could easily enter the premises, according to the Albany Times Union.

At the time, his wife Silda famously chose to stick by his side, per Politico, but the couple finally parted ways in 2013. According to US media, towards the end of his marriage, Spitzer was also having an affair with Lis Smith, who had worked on his failed bid for city comptroller in 2013.

Former New York governor Eliot Spitzer was embroiled in scandal after scandal in the early 2000s. Photo: AP Photos

Then, in 2016, Spitzer was involved in yet another scandal. This time, he claimed he was being blackmailed by a Russian woman named Svetlana Travis Zakharova who alleged he had attacked her during a night at the Plaza Hotel. US media reported that the two had been having an affair and that she’d called 911 from the hotel after he’d threatened to cut ties with her. Lis Smith called off the relationship when Spitzer told her about the supposed blackmail attempt.

With all of that relationship baggage, all eyes were on the “luv-guv” and Girand when their relationship went public in September 2017.