2026-08-04T17:52:19.115Z / 美国有线电视新闻网（CNN）
作者：莎拉·费里斯、劳伦·福克斯
2小时前
发布于 2026年8月4日美国东部时间下午1:52
两名知情内部人士向CNN透露，在周一公布针对众议员爱德华兹的道德调查报告后，众议院共和党领导人正私下劝说北卡罗来纳州竞争激烈选区的众议员查克·爱德华兹放弃连任竞选。
众议院道德委员会公布了历时数月的调查结果，认定该议员存在“实质性证据”证明其多次对两名女性工作人员做出不受欢迎的挑逗行为，这让众议院共和党高层措手不及。该委员会罕见地提议全院众议院投票对爱德华兹进行惩处。
目前众议院议员正在家乡选区度过八月休会期。最早的投票可能要到9月才能举行，但共和党领导人认为投票结果会对爱德华兹不利，并将进一步破坏他的连任前景。而他们的担忧源于越来越多人担心，他所代表的北卡罗来纳州西部选区可能会在11月的选举中易主。
目前尚不清楚爱德华兹是否会听从这些呼吁。他的竞选团队发言人周一表示，道德委员会的调查结果“完全符合众议院针对性行为不端或性骚扰的相关规则，证明爱德华兹众议员是无辜的”，并表示该结论表明该议员“并未违反联邦性骚扰法律”。
竞选团队发言人兼战略家保罗·舒梅克称，爱德华兹“期待着洗清自己的罪名，并将确保整个过程真相大白”。
CNN已就共和党领导人施压一事联系爱德华兹征求评论。
共和党领导人还面临其他潜在障碍：党内仍在梳理在竞选周期如此后期阶段更换其参选资格的程序问题。爱德华兹在3月的初选中轻松击败共和党挑战者成功连任候选人提名。
党内内部早已对爱德华兹的选情感到明显焦虑：尽管该选区在2024年大选中以9.5个百分点的优势支持特朗普，但民主党候选人、农民杰米·阿杰在上一季度的筹款额几乎是爱德华兹的9倍。
道德委员会周一表示，“有充分理由相信爱德华兹众议员违反了众议院关于性骚扰和敌意工作环境的相关规定”。
该委员会建议众议院投票谴责爱德华兹。谴责是众议院最严厉的惩处措施之一，尽管不会将议员除名，除公开警告外也没有明确的其他处罚。
根据委员会的报告，爱德华兹否认其行为“意在表达性或浪漫挑逗”，报告同时指出，未发现爱德华兹“与两名女性发生性行为”的证据。
CNN的黛安·加拉格尔和伊桑·科恩对本文亦有贡献。
GOP leaders privately push embattled Rep. Chuck Edwards to abandon reelection bid
2026-08-04T17:52:19.115Z / CNN
By Sarah Ferris, Lauren Fox
2 hr ago
PUBLISHED Aug 4, 2026, 1:52 PM ET
US Rep. Chuck Edwards of North Carolina, center, speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on June 2.
Kylie Cooper/Reuters
House Republican leaders are privately working to convince Rep. Chuck Edwards to abandon his reelection bid for a competitive North Carolina seat after an ethics report dropped against the congressman Monday, two people familiar with internal discussions told CNN.
Top House Republicans were sent scrambling when the chamber’s ethics panel released a monthslong investigation that found “substantial evidence” the congressman repeatedly made unwanted advances toward two female staffers. The panel took the rare step of recommending that the full House vote to punish Edwards.
House members are in their home districts for August recess. The earliest a vote would take place would be in September, but GOP leaders believe it will succeed and would further damage his reelection prospects. The fears come as they’re increasingly worried his western North Carolina seat could flip in November.
It’s not yet clear whether Edwards will heed the calls. A spokesman for his campaign said Monday that the ethics committee’s findings “completely exonerate Representative Edwards under the House rules governing sexual misconduct or harassment” and that its conclusion showed the congressman “did not violate federal sexual harassment law.”
Edwards “looks forward to having his name cleared and will work to ensure that the full light of day is brought on this process,” said Paul Shumaker, a spokesperson and strategist for the campaign.
CNN has reached out to request comment from Edwards on the push by GOP leaders.
There are other potential hurdles for party leaders: Republicans are still sorting out the procedural questions of replacing him on the ballot so late in the cycle. Edwards easily defeated a GOP challenger to win his primary in March.
Inside the party, there was already palpable anxiety over Edwards’ ability to win in a district that Trump won by 9.5 points in 2024. The Democrat in the race, farmer Jamie Ager, outraised Edwards by nearly 9-to-1 last quarter.
The ethics panel said Monday that “there was substantial reason to believe Representative Edwards violated House Rules related to sexual harassment and hostile workplaces.”
The committee recommended the House vote to censure Edwards. A censure is one of the most severe forms of punishment in the chamber, though it does not remove a member and carries no explicit penalties beyond a public admonition.
The congressman denied that his behavior was “intended as a sexual or romantic advance,” according to the committee’s report, which also said it found no evidence that Edwards “engaged in sexual activity” with the women.
CNN’s Dianne Gallagher and Ethan Cohen contributed to this report.
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