North Carolina Republican Scandals | Updated List of GOP Scandals in NC

North Carolina Republican U.S. Congress Member & Candidate Scandals
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276k33 Years in GOP
1/06/23
Cashed in between $628,000 and $1.72 million in stocks from companies seen as vulnerable to the burgeoning COVID-19 outbreak over a series of 33 separate transactions after receiving confidential briefings as chair of the Senate Intelligence CommitteeAccording to financial disclosures reported on by the media -
5/04/22
Got on top of another man while he was naked and simulated receiving oral sex by repeatedly thrusting his pelvis near their head while making high-pitched moaning soundsAccording to a NSFW video posted online by an anonymous source
4/26/22
Attempted to take his loaded handgun onto his airplane at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, but was stopped by TSA agents who took possession of his weapon and issued him a citationAccording to an airport spokesperson and reported by mainstream outlets
4/26/22
Promoted a new cryptocurrency he had secret information on one day before it was released to the public without disclosing his investment as required by lawThe House Ethics Committee ordered Cawthorn to pay $14,237.49 to charity after their investigation concluded he acted improperly
7/31/21
Was caught with an unloaded gun and loaded magazine clip in his carryon bag as he was going through security at a regional airport in North CarolinaAccording to an airport spokesperson and reported by mainstream outlets
2/27/21
Drove multiple women out into remote rural areas while in college and if they turned down his advances, he would drive back to campus recklessly at very high speeds because as one woman described it "he was upset that I had turned him down or refused his advances"According to firsthand accounts of several alleged victims shared The Washington Post
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1/30/23
Illegally accepted over $25,000 in campaign contributions from a single family member far exceeding the $5,600 legal limit per personAccording to charging documents filed by federal prosecutors
North Carolina Republican Judge Scandals
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Jason KimbleState Judge [R-NC]
5/23/25
Hit another vehicle while driving drunk with a BAC nearly three times the legal limit with his young daughter in the car during the middle of a workday and then tried to get out of trouble by telling the arresting officer that he was a judge and named police officers he personally knewAccording to charging documents filed by local officials
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John TysonState Judge [R-NC]
5/14/21
Came mere feet away from intentionally ramming into two demonstrators with his SUV and only avoided hitting them because they were able to jump out of the way moments before being struckAccording to charging documents filed by local police
North Carolina Republican State Legislator Scandals
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6/19/23
Was sued for $200k by a husband who claimed he used his position to persuade his wife, who was a mid-level state government employee, to engage in a yearslong affair that included instances of group sex and led to the eventual destruction of the couple's marriageAccording to a $200,000 civil lawsuit filed by former Republican candidate Scott Lassiter
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Andy DulinFmr. State Representative
10/30/18
Was pulled over on suspicion of drunk driving and refused a breathalyzer and field sobriety tests which resulted in police arresting himAccording to charging documents filed by local police
North Carolina Republican City Official Scandals
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Ronald JohnsonSchool Board Member [R-NC]
1/18/25
Attempted to extort a congressional candidate by threatening to release a potentially damaging secret recording he had of him unless he pressured a woman Johnson was having an affair with to deny its existence and then removed evidence from his office while officers were executing a search warrant against himAccording to charging documents filed by local officials
Other North Carolina Republican Scandals
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Richard BraswellCommissioner [R-NC]
6/29/22
Sexually molested a 13-year-old girl he spent years cultivating a relationship with at church and in the community while also being marriedAccording to charging documents filed by local officials
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Craig PierceCommissioner [R-NC]
10/18/21
Swerved in and out of his lane while driving 50-mph in a 35-mph zone and went on a profanity-laden rant against his arresting officers where he threatened to get them fired and self-assuredly said he was going to call in political favors to make his charges disappear and when in custody took a breathalyzer test which was more than three times the legal limitAccording to charging documents filed by local police
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Tracy EllixsonCounty Commissioner [R-NC]
2/12/25
According to charging documents filed by local officials
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McCrae DowlessFmr. Political Operative
9/02/21
Illegally collected Social Security Disability and retirement benefits from the government by neglecting to inform them about the more than $132,000 he earned working on political campaigns which would have drastically reduced the number of benefits he would have been eligible forAccording to charging documents filed by federal officials
2/27/19
Conspired to illegally collect and fill out unsuspecting voters absentee and mail-in ballots to help Republican candidates in the 2018 midterm election and later lied to federal authorities when they questioned himAccording to charging documents filed by federal prosecutors
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David BlackwelderFmr. Sheriff Candidate
10/02/20
According to charging documents filed by local officials -
Gerald HegeFmr. Sheriff [R-NC]
9/20/03
Stole $6,200 dollars from the sheriff department's bank account which he used to pay for his re-election parties in 1998 and 2002 and to reimburse an employee for a travel expense and then obstructed justice by attempting to cover his tracks on expense reportsAllegedly according to reporting from credible media outlets
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Jody GreeneFmr. Sheriff [R-NC]
10/21/22
Had a monthslong extramarital affair with a female subordinate where they had sex in multiple places including his office, patrol car, home and a local shooting range and eventually impregnated herAccording to court records reported by local publications