Will there ever come a morning that people in Toronto wake up and we don’t hear that Adam Giambrone has had another affair? This is starting to feel like Tiger Woods all over again!

Wednesday morning, the Toronto Star reported on a statement he released to them late Tuesday night, admitting to multiple affairs and apologizing for his behaviour:

“In an effort to bring this chapter to a close, let me say I did have intimate relationships for a period that lasted throughout most of last year with women other than my partner. I apologize to them for the hurt I have caused. I regret deeply not having made this full disclosure earlier, to Sarah, my partner, and to my family, my friends and my supporters as well.”

Then news hit he was going to have a press conference at City Hall Wednesday morning.

Apparently he made a 90 second appearance, where he apologized to his partner Sarah McQuarrie, he left it to an aide to continue the statement and announce Giambrone is leaving the mayoral race. He would remain chair of the TTC and city councillor until the election.

In short, he had no choice but to quit.

There were two camps on Tuesday, those who asked why we should care about Giambrone’s personal life and those who were basically calling for him to be burned at the stake. As it most often does, the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

The thing is, once someone takes on a public role in society, their personal life is fair game. It may not be fair, but it’s the way it is. And while Giambrobne’s scandal is not the same as him fathering a child out of wedlock with another woman like John Edwards, it still should sting just as hard.

Perhaps some of the reason some people don’t see this scandal as being a big deal is because he and McQuarrie are not married (I believe I even heard that spin on the radio Tuesday). That should not matter — cheating is cheating, period.

It’s a shame to see Giambrone drop out of the race, if only because this year’s municipal election in Toronto was heating up to be an exciting one, even without John Tory and Michael Bryant in the mix.

At least he’s young, so there is a chance Giambrone can make a comeback at some point.

Some highlights of coverage from the past few days:

• The Toronto Sun’s Rob Granatstein’s comment on the scandal from (Tuesday morning).
• The audio from Giambrone’s Tuesday night statement to the Star (with video here)

Do you think Giambrone had to quit? Or could he have waited it out?