(Getty) Bill Wald and Leslie Marshall
Bill Weld is the former governor of Massachusetts. On April 15 Weld formally announced that he is entering the race for the White House — making Weld the first Republican to officially mount a challenge to President Trump. Weld issued a statement announcing that he was running in order to bring American back to “the principles of Lincoln,” which he said were equality, dignity, and opportunity. Weld said, in his statement, “Ours is a nation built on courage, resilience, and independence. In these times of great political strife, when both major parties are entrenched in their ‘win at all cost’ battles, the voices of the American people are being ignored and our nation is suffering.”
Weld has been hinting that he’s interested in a 2020 run for some time. On February 15, Weld announced that he is considering mounting a primary challenge against President Trump. Speaking at an event in New Hampshire, Weld called the president “unstable” and said that Trump had put the country in “peril.” Weld told his supporters, “our president is simply too unstable to carry out the duties of the highest executive office in the land,” Weld said. He added, “I’m here because I think our country is in grave peril, and I cannot sit any longer quietly on the sidelines. We have a president who openly praises and encourages despotic and authoritarian leaders abroad while going out of his way seemingly to insult and even humiliate our Democratic allies.”
Weld is married to the writer Leslie Marshall; between them, they have eight children from previous marriages. Here’s what you need to know about Leslie Marshall:
1. Leslie Marshall Is Weld’s Second Wife & They Married in 2005
Bill Weld
Leslie and Bill got married in 2005, after the end of Bill’s 26 year marriage to Susan Roosevelt Weld. New York Magazine reported that Weld’s marriage to Susan fell apart when he took a job in New York City and Susan stayed in Boston with the couple’s children. The long distance relationship created problems in the marriage and, according to New York Magazine, led Bill to start an affair with Leslie Marshall. Marshall was a long-time family friend and divorcee who was living in New York City.
“Bill has never been a womanizer,” Scott Asen, an old friend of Weld’s, told New York Magazine. “He took a step from one to the other. You can’t call it a frivolous act.”
Bill and Susan had five children together: David, Ethel, Mary, Quentin, and Franny.
2. Marshall Is a Published Novelist & Magazine Writer
Bill Weld
Marshall is the author of a novel titled “A Girl Could Stand Up.” The novel tells the story of a girl raised by two of her uncles. A review in the Guardian describes the novel as “ponderous” and full of “wilfully kooky characters” with “aggressively strange names, chaotic daily lives and cartoonish incidents and accidents.”
Marshall is has also written for magazines and newspapers, including The Washington Post; RealSimple; O; and InStyle.
3. Marshall Has Three Children from a Previous Marriage
Bill Weld with John Stewart
Leslie Marshall was divorced when she first began a relationship with Bill Weld. She has three children: twin daughters and one son, three years younger than the twins. Weld has five children of his own from his marriage to Susan Roosevelt Weld.
4. Marshall Grew Up in Washington, DC & Attended the National Cathedral School
Bill Weld
Marshall grew up in Washington DC and attended the National Cathedral school, a private high school for girls. The school’s website says, “An NCS education amply prepares one for her future, wherever that may lead. Here she builds confidence, gathers allies, tests strengths, finds the courage to explore new areas of interest, and discovers resilience — life lessons that she will never outgrow. She also experiences a stimulating academic life, priming her for a lifetime of learning. Nothing is beyond the grasp of an NCS woman, and we are both proud and unsurprised to count stateswomen, Olympic athletes, and rocket scientists among our alumnae.”
5. Weld’s First Wife Was a Descendant of Theodore Roosevelt
Before marrying Leslie Marshall, Bill Weld was married to Susan Roosevelt Weld for 26 years. Susan is the great-granddaughter of Theodore Roosevelt. She and Bill have five children together: David, Ethel, Mary, Quentin, and Franny. New York Magazine reported that Weld’s marriage to Susan fell apart when he took a job in New York City and Susan stayed in Boston with the couple’s children. The long distance relationship created problems in the marriage and, according to New York Magazine, led Bill to start an affair with Leslie Marshall. Marshall was a long-time family friend and divorcee who was living in New York City.