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Embattled Republican Rep. Chuck Edwards announced early Wednesday he would end his campaign for reelection, but plans to serve out his term.
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“After much prayer and reflection, I’ve decided to withdraw from my re-election campaign,” Edwards wrote on social media at 3:30 a.m. “I will complete my current term. Serving Western North Carolina has been the honor of my life.”
The news comes after the House Committee on Ethics released a 25-page report finding “substantial evidence” that Edwards sexually harassed two young female employees and created a hostile work environment.
The committee also released 60-pages of text messages between the congressman and his staffers.
The allegations against Edwards include skipping House votes to decorate an employee’s Christmas tree, buying an employee $1,000 worth of jewelry, designer bags, shoes, a Kitchen Aid, a robot vacuum, trips to New York City and Las Vegas and spending his birthday out-of-state with one of the women.
Edwards and his team denied any wrongdoing, and he testified before the committee that he would say “no,” when asked if he should have treated his employees any differently.
On Tuesday, a Capitol Hill source told McClatchy that Sen. Ted Budd, a Republican from Davie County, told Edwards to drop out of the race. Budd said, through a spokesman, he would not disclose his private conversations, but he found the report “deeply concerning” and that Edwards “faces an uphill battle.”
Dropping out of the race now allows the local Republican Party to choose a replacement candidate for the 11th Congressional District, in southwestern North Carolina, where Edwards serves.
Edwards was facing off against Democratic challenger Jamie Ager, a local farmer with a family lineage of past elected officials.
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Republican state lawmakers drew Edwards’ district with strong Republican support, making it seemingly an easy reelection campaign for Edwards. But the investigation of Edwards’ actions, coupled with very low fundraising, made election watchers switch the district from “leans Republican” to a toss-up.
Edwards began serving the 11th Congressional District in 2023, after winning the Republican primary against then-Rep. Madison Cawthorn and going on to win in the general election.
Voters chose to replace Cawthorn, who had a series of indiscretions that included calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a thug, bringing weapons to airports and schools and a suggestive leaked video with his cousin.
Chris Cooper, a professor at Western Carolina University, within Edwards’ district, said previously that people in the district perceived Edwards “as the grownup in the room” compared to Cawthorn, whose young age — he’s only 31 now — led to some of his trouble.
But in the past year-and-a-half, Edwards has had substantial staff turnover, and rumors about his indiscretions began to percolate.
Prior to serving in Congress, Edwards served in the state Senate and owned several McDonalds franchises, which he recently announced selling.
Edwards is still facing a potential censure from his House colleagues, which means after the annual August recess, the House will vote on whether to have Edwards stand in the well of the House while allegations against him are read out.
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This is a developing story and will be updated.
This story was originally published August 5, 2026 at 7:11 AM.