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Mark Kirk’s Ex-Wife Denies That Kirk Is Gay, Gives Other Reasons For Divorce

08/04/10-by Bridgette P. LaVictoire
A recent interview with Kimberly Vertolli by Chicago Magazine provides some interesting incite into the rumors that Mark Kirk is gay, and that the reason that the two got divorced was likely over a woman named Dodie McCracken. Vertolli stated that the rumors about Kirk being gay stem from his being 41 when he married and not from, well, people seeing him in the gay bars in Washington, DC.

Vertolli is passionately in support of the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and lobbied her ex-husband on behalf of the Human Rights Campaign. Vertolli is a member, donor and volunteer for the HRC. Still, Kirk voted against the DADT repeal, and as Vertolli stated “Therefore, he voted in favor of maintaining a discriminatory policy against gays and lesbians who are serving us in the military. I privately withdrew my support because to me that’s a basic human right. I will not support a candidate who upholds a policy that discriminates against gays and lesbians.”

Apparently, Kirk has stated that, when the issue comes up again, he will support overturning DADT.

According to Vertolli, the person who has the most influence over Mark Kirk is Dodie McCracken. According to her, McCracken is the central figure within his campaign team, and she wields an inordinate amount of influence over Kirk. Vertolli stated “No, I will not because there’s a person who is a very pernicious force on his team who is wielding a disproportionate amount of negative influence on him. As long as she’s there, I can’t be his moral conscience.”

About McCracken, Vertolli stated “there wasn’t enough room for the two of us to stay in Mark’s life.” Her statements make it almost seem as if Kirk and McCracken were involved in more than a professional relationship. McCracken did not stop working with Kirk after he and Vertolli were married. Vertolli stated “I think that if Dodie McCracken had not continued to be in our lives, we probably would still be married.”

About the rumors regarding Kirk being gay, Vertolli stated:

“That’s been going on since he first ran. It’s highly unusual for a man to have been married to a woman for eight years and not produced children. And it’s unusual for a man to have not been married until he’s 40 years old. [Kirk was 41]. So people get suspicious. It’s human nature. When we don’t understand something, we want to attach an explanation to it. It’s not an accurate explanation that Mark is gay, but nevertheless, that’s how some people choose to reconcile it.”

This is odd since Kirk has been known to visit several trendy gay nightspots is not brought into this. Still, given the possible relationship between McCracken and Kirk is something more than professional relationship, maybe there is some other reason he visits the gay bars.

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