A U.S. House committee is recommending sanctions against North Carolina U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards, saying there was reason to believe he violated House rules related to sexual harassment and hostile workplaces.
The U.S. House Committee on Ethics said Monday that it reviewed allegations that Edwards created or fostered a hostile work environment and engaged in sexual harassment, finding that Edwards broke rules prohibiting sexual harassment of and unwanted advances toward House staffers. The committee has recommended the full House adopt the report and censure Edwards.
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“Edwards engaged in persistent unprofessional and inappropriate conduct towards two young female staffers,” the committee wrote in a report to the U.S. House. “While Representative Edwards denied that any of his conduct was intended as a sexual or romantic advance, his pattern of behavior would lead a reasonable observer to interpret it as such, including providing the young women with lavish and recurrent gifts, making comments regarding their appearance and dress, inviting them to intimate dinners and vacations, sending notes regarding his effusive affection, and inviting them to other activities as a way to spend time together.”
The committee said it found no evidence that Edwards engaged in sexual activity with or explicitly propositioned any members of his staff.
National Democrats have targeted Edwards' district as one of their top targets nationwide to try to flip in the November midterms, WRAL reported earlier this year. On Monday, Edwards’ campaign said the findings of no sexual activity and no propositions “contradict the committee's conclusion.”
“The committee findings completely exonerate Representative Edwards under the House rules governing sexual misconduct or harassment,” the campaign said in a statement. “… They concluded that he neither engaged in sexual activity with nor explicitly propositioned any individual staff member. They concluded that the allegations in this matter do not implicate quid pro quo sexual harassment. They concluded he did not violate federal sexual harassment law.”
The statement continued: “However, the committee staff has taken it upon themselves to write their own rules based upon an interpretation that is inconsistent with the written rule of law or House rules. Representative Edwards looks forward to having his name cleared and will work to ensure that the full light of day is brought on this process and that every member of Congress and the public can see the attempt to harm the Congressman who has brought no harm to others.”
Edwards previously told WRAL he believes the claims against him are politically motivated. The ethics committee features five Republicans and five Democrats. Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss, chaired the committee. It also included two members from North Carolina: Republican Brad Knott and Democrat Deborah Ross.
The committee said Edwards “went beyond norms of professional behavior” by giving both women jewelry worth more than $1,000, guns, designer purses, shoes, flowers, electronics, a KitchenAid mixer, robotic vacuum, vacations, tickets to performances, one-on-one dinners.
The committee also detailed a trip to Las Vegas during which Edwards sent flowers to one of the staffers. She told him the gift made her feel uncomfortable, the report said, and Edwards apologized.
The women who were at the center of the allegations “were put in an untenable position by virtue of his status as their boss and a member of Congress,” the report said. “Representative Edwards was at minimum blind to that reality, and at worst, dismissive of the impact his inappropriate conduct had on the careers and wellbeing of two women on his staff.
According to the committee, Edwards cooperated with the investigation and acknowledged that at least some of the behavior at issue could be viewed as inappropriate. He also agreed to waive the processes required for the committee to recommend sanctions on the House floor.
“However, he has not acknowledged or taken responsibility for the harm he caused,” the committee said in its report.
The committee conducted 16 witness interviews and reviewed nearly 1,500 pages of documentary evidence.
Edwards, a Republican from Hendersonville, represents most of western North Carolina in Congress. He unseated a fellow Republican, former Rep. Madison Cawthorn, in 2022 to represent North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District. Prior to joining Congress, Edwards was a businessman and state Senator.
Edwards is facing a challenge from Democrat Jamie Ager. The district supported President Donald Trump by 9.5 percentage points in 2024. However, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has been raising funds for Ager and the The Center for Politics previously moved the race from “lean Republican” to “toss up.”