Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) is rejecting the House Ethics Committee’s conclusion that he sexually harassed two female former staff members.
Edwards, who has represented North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District since 2023, is making his case to colleagues ahead of a possible censure vote next week.
In a statement Thursday, Edwards said he “unequivocally rejects” the ethics committee’s conclusion that he engaged in “persistent unprofessional and inappropriate conduct” toward the staffers.
"Sexual harassment is a serious offense. One that deserves to be defined clearly, investigated fairly, and established by evidence—not inference or speculation,” Edwards said, adding that the committee’s conclusions “do not accurately reflect the facts or the full context surrounding these allegations.”
According to NOTUS, a news outlet based in Washington, D.C., Edwards also circulated a letter Thursday in which he urged fellow House members not to censure him.
“An affectionate friendship is not a sexual proposition,” Edwards wrote in the letter, according to NOTUS. “A gift is not sexual misconduct. A compliment is not sexual misconduct. Poetry is not sexual misconduct. Socializing with a colleague is not sexual misconduct. Caring deeply about someone with whom you have worked and come to know for years is not sexual misconduct.”
The letter includes a list of “15 Questions Members Should Ask Before Accepting the Ethics Report."
The ethics panel released its findings earlier this month in a 25-page report that included dozens of pages of evidence. It detailed Edwards’s behavior toward the staffers, including sending them “lavish” gifts, writing them notes and poetry expressing his affection for them and inviting them to “intimate dinners and vacations.”
The panel also found that Edwards skipped House votes and re-scheduled a tele-town hall in order to spend time with one of the staffers. In one instance, Edwards had “approximately 30 different types of ice cream” delivered to a staffer’s house.
Attorneys for Edwards objected to the committee’s conclusions in a lengthy response and vowed that the congressman would fight to clear his name. But days later, under pressure from House Republican leaders, Edwards dropped his reelection bid.
Republican leaders in the 11th District chose state Rep. Jennifer Balkcom (R) to replace Edwards on the November ballot. Balkcom faces Democrat Jamie Ager in what is expected to be one of this year’s most competitive U.S. House races. The 11th District includes most of Western North Carolina.
The House could hold a censure vote as early as next week. The chamber returns from its August recess on Monday.
A censure vote does not entail expulsion from the U.S. House. Edwards’ congressional term ends in January.
