Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards has admitted he fathered a child with a filmmaker hired before his second presidential bid.
In a statement to the Associated Press, Mr Edwards said he was the father of the girl.
Mr Edwards had initially denied that he was the girl's father. A former aide had claimed paternity of the girl.
"I am Quinn's father," Mr Edwards said in the statement, released as Frances Quinn Hunter is about to turn two.
"It was wrong for me ever to deny she was my daughter and hopefully one day, when she understands, she will forgive me," the former senator said in the statement.
Apology
He added that he had been financially supporting his daughter and that he had reached an agreement with her mother, filmmaker Reille Hunter, to continue providing support in the future.
"To all those I have disappointed and hurt, these words will never be enough, but I am truly sorry," said Mr Edwards, who originally admitted having an affair in August 2008.
The former aide who claimed paternity of the child, Andrew Young, is due to release a book on Mr Edwards's affair in early February.
The child was born on 27 February, 2008, suggesting she was conceived in mid-2007, several months after Ms Hunter had stopped being employed by the Edwards campaign.
Mr Edwards's wife, Elizabeth, who suffered from cancer during the campaign, has said she will stand by her husband despite the affair.
The child, she has said, "would be a part of John's life, but not a part of mine".
Mr Edwards stepped out of the White House race in January 2008 without backing any of his rivals after failing to win a single party nomination contest.
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