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Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. House voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to censure U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards of Western North Carolina over allegations of inappropriate behavior toward staffers.
The vote was 413 to 2. Edwards, a Hendersonville Republican, and Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina opposed the formal reprimand.
The censure, which all 13 of Edwards’ North Carolina colleagues supported, is a formal rebuke that doesn’t strip Edwards of his committee assignments or force him out of office. U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson called Edwards to the well of the chamber as he read aloud the resolution against him. Edwards becomes the 29th lawmaker censured in the chamber’s history.
A bipartisan report from the House Ethics Committee recommended the censure after finding substantial evidence that Edwards violated “the spirit of the House’s prohibition on sexual harassment and unwanted advances” toward two young female staffers.
The alleged inappropriate behavior included unsolicited gifts such as jewelry totaling over $1,000, designer purses, guns, shoes, flowers, a laptop and cell phone, KitchenAid mixer, robotic vacuum, vacations, tickets to performances, and one-on-one dinners.
In a House floor speech ahead of the vote on Tuesday, Edwards apologized to the former staff members but doubled down on his view that censure was too stiff a punishment.
“I am imperfect,” he said. “I have made mistakes. But I do not believe I committed sexual harassment, and the factual findings of this investigation do not justify branding me as though I did.”
He added, “The committee concluded that I engaged in no sexual activity. The committee concluded that I did not explicitly proposition any staff member.”
Republican U.S. Rep. Michael Guest of Mississippi, the chairman of the ethics committee, said the panel worked “very diligently to try to gather evidence to try to present that in a fair format.” Democratic Rep. Mark DeSaulnier of California, a ranking member on the committee, also defended its recommendation.
“Representative Edwards’ interpretation of his own conduct does not change how the women experienced it,” DeSaulnier said. “Rep. Edwards may not have made physical advances or explicit propositions, but sexual harassment does not require either. His conduct was inappropriate, unwelcome, and most important, created a hostile work environment.”
Other lawmakers argued the public rebuke wasn’t a strong enough punishment.
“These women lost their jobs because of Mr. Edwards’ behavior,” said Democratic Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández of New Mexico. “He should lose his. It’s time we reform the rules in Congress so abusers like Edwards are at least stripped of committee assignments or expelled if the offense calls for it.”
According to the ethics report, the two female staffers left Edwards’ congressional office due to his conduct, but they provided other explanations to the congressman.
Amid mounting pressure from within his party, Edwards announced last month that he’d abandon his reelection bid. Republican state Rep. Jennifer Balkcom of Henderson County is now running in Edwards’ place against Democrat Jamie Ager.
In a typical year, Balkcom would likely win the seat, since President Donald Trump carried the 11th District by nearly 9.5 percentage points in the 2024 election. But with little time for her to mount a campaign and Ager entering July with almost $2.2 million in available cash, Democrats have reason to be hopeful about their chances.
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report ranks the district as lean-Republican and one of the nation’s 37 most competitive seats this November.
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