U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards Denies Reports of Improper Relationship: ‘Horseshit’

U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards Tuesday vigorously denied allegations that he’s had improper relationships with younger female aides, allegations that have become part of a House Ethics Committee investigation.

“In the mountains we have to shovel horseshit,” he told The Assembly before an event at Blue Ridge Community College in Flat Rock. “In D.C. I have to deal with horseshit. And these allegations are more horseshit.”

Edwards, a two-term Republican, made the comments during a wide-ranging interview about his re-election campaign. They were his first in-person statements in response to the probe.

Even before the allegations, he faced what was expected to be a tough re-election fight in the 11th Congressional district of Western North Carolina. Edwards, a businessman from Flat Rock, is running for a third term. He faces Democrat Jamie Ager, a farmer from Fairview.

Though the district has tilted Republican in recent years, analysts say that with President Trump’s unpopularity and rising prices at the gas pump and elsewhere, it could be Democrats’ best chance to flip a House seat in the state. 

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has made it a target. Its House Majority PAC announced Friday that it’s reserving $4.3 million worth of advertising on Ager’s behalf.

The House ethics probe was first reported Thursday by Axios. On Monday, it published more details, including the contents of a three-page handwritten letter Edwards sent to a young female staffer as she was leaving his office. According to Axios, the letter said a staffer had “written a complex chapter in my heart.”

“I only wish I could explain the joy and meaning to me for the time we spent together in the office–but especially away from it,” the letter continued. Axios said the letter was signed, “With my lifetime of appreciation and devotion, Chuck.” 

Axios also reported that Edwards bought the staffer personal gifts while she worked for him. 

NOTUS, The Assembly’s Washington-based news partner, reported that the Ethics Committee is investigating whether Edwards was engaged in a long-term affair with his former deputy chief of staff, whom he had hired when he was a state legislator in 2021. Multiple sources told NOTUS that Edwards and the former deputy chief were not discreet, and the relationship was common knowledge among members of the North Carolina congressional delegation.

Asked Tuesday about the reports, Edwards said, “I’m not going to debate these issues in trashy tabloids.” Asked if he’d ever had a romantic relationship with a staffer, he was blunt: “No.” 

In a statement later Tuesday, Edwards called the reports “baseless allegations designed to impact the campaign driven by those who want to settle old political scores.”

Edwards, 65, has been married since 1980.

The ethics probe comes as other members facing such probes have resigned over allegations of sexual abuse. They include Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell of California and Republican Tony Gonzales of Texas. Edwards dismissed speculation that he could join them.

“I have no reason to resign,” he told The Assembly. “I have done nothing wrong.”

He said he’s confident the House investigation will exonerate him.

“I look forward to getting my good name–and the good names of others that have been smeared with false accusations–cleared as soon as possible,” he said.

Politico reported Tuesday that U.S. Reps. Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican, and Anna Paulina Luna, a Florida Republican, were following the Edwards investigation closely. They were key players in ousting Swalwell and Gonzales. 

“If you are abusing your power in Congress it does not matter if you have an R or D beside your name, there needs to be consequences for your actions,” Mace said in a statement. 

“It’s not a good day for Chuck Edwards,” said Chris Cooper, a political scientist at Western Carolina University. “It’s too early to know whether, or to what degree, the accusations are true but regardless, he’s been put on the defensive. That’s not a place any politician wants to be.

“Chuck Edwards is still the favorite in this race,” Cooper said. “The district leans heavily towards the Republican Party and, until last week, Edwards has been scandal-free. 

Edwards defeated U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn in the 2022 Republican primary before winning that fall. He was reelected in 2024. He served three terms in the state Senate before he was elected to Congress.