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Sen. Ted Budd encouraged Rep. Chuck Edwards to drop out of the race to represent North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District, a Capitol Hill source told McClatchy on Tuesday.
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The source said Budd, a Republican from Davie County, and Edwards, a Republican from Flat Rock, had a conversation Tuesday in which Budd told Edwards his race is not winnable.
CNN reported that House Republican leaders are working to convince Edwards to drop out.
A spokesman for Budd told McClatchy Tuesday night that Budd does not disclose his private conversations, but he finds the House Ethics report deeply concerning.
“He believes Rep. Edwards faces a significant uphill battle in his reelection bid, given that he was already trailing in the polls and being out-raised 9 to 1 even before this report’s publication,” the spokesman said.
The committee reported finding substantial evidence against Edwards that he sexually harassed two young female staffers, created a hostile work environment and led both women to resign from their jobs in Congress.
Edwards denies any wrongdoing, and told the committee “I’m going to say no,” when asked if he would change his actions toward the women, the committee report states.
Several Democrats, including the Democratic Women’s Caucus, made up of female House members, have called for Edwards’ resignation. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat from Washington State, called for Edwards’ expulsion on social media.
On Tuesday, Doug Heye, a national Republican political commentator who served as former Sen. Richard Burr’s spokesman, posted on social media that “the best thing (Edwards) can do is announce he’s not seeking re-election. He won’t win, and he doesn’t deserve to.”
Edwards, 65, began representing the 11th Congressional District, the state’s far southwestern counties, in 2023. He is seeking reelection to a third term and is running against Democrat Jamie Ager.
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Among the allegations in the report against Edwards is that he bought his staffers guns, $1,000 worth of jewelry, a robotic vacuum, a Kitchen Aid mixer, tickets to “Hamilton,” trips to New York and Las Vegas, a helicopter ride and shoes, among many other things. He also missed House votes to decorate one staffer’s Christmas tree and took one to the White House Christmas party and one to a casino, according to the report.
McClatchy reached out to Edwards’ campaign adviser Paul Shumaker Tuesday, who told McClatchy to call Budd’s team for confirmation about Budd’s calls to withdraw.
Shumaker said he spoke to Edwards on Tuesday morning, and that he plans to fight the allegations against him, but they have a second call scheduled Wednesday morning to check in with one another.
Shumaker said whether Edwards remains in Congress or in the race is a decision Edwards and his wife need to make on their own. He said he told Edwards to do “what you can sleep with at night.”
He said he gave similar advice to Rep. Tim Moore, a Republican from Kings Mountain, who was sued over allegations that he broke up the marriage of a state employee when he was speaker of the state House. Moore did not resign, ran for Congress and won.
Prior to Monday’s report release, Edwards’ district had already been shifted by political observers from a Republican-leaning district to a “toss-up,” partially due to an investigation of Edwards’ actions and partially because of his poor campaign fundraising.
Edwards is running against Democratic nominee Jamie Ager, a local farmer whose family-line includes at least three past and present elected officials.
Republicans have until early September for Edwards to drop out to and be replaced by another nominee.
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This story was originally published August 4, 2026 at 5:57 PM.