What is Madison Cawthorn's Net Worth and Salary?
Madison Cawthorn is a conservative American politician who has a net worth of $200,000. Madison Cawthorn is best known for serving one term as a U.S. representative for North Carolina's 11th congressional district. When elected, he became the third-youngest member of the House of Representatives in U.S. history. He lost a re-election primary bid in May 2022.
Early Life
Madison Cawthorn was born on August 1, 1995, in Asheville, North Carolina, to parents Priscilla and Roger Cawthorn. He was homeschooled in Hendersonville, North Carolina, through 12th grade, though he did play football with the Asheville Saints as the team allowed homeschooled students. He also worked at Chick-fil-A as a teen.
In 2014, when Cawthorn was 18, he was riding in his friend's car while on a spring break trip to Florida. His friend, Bradley Ledford, fell asleep at the wheel, and the car crashed into a concrete barrier while Cawhorn's feet were on the dashboard. Cawthorn was left paralyzed from the waist down and now uses a wheelchair. Following the accident, Cawthorn received a settlement from the insurance company.
Prior to the accident, U.S. Representative Mark Meadows had nominated Cawthorn to the United States Naval Academy. However, his application was rejected. Cawthorn later made false statements about how the accident he was involved in had derailed his plans to attend the Naval Academy. Such statements were corrected during a 2017 deposition in which Cawthorn admitted he had been rejected prior to the accident.
In 2016, Cawthorn attended Patrick Henry College to study political science. However, he did not perform well academically and said the accident had made it more challenging for him to learn. During this time, he was working as a staff assistant in Representative Mark Meadow's office.
Career
Madison Cawthorn became more interested in pursuing a career in politics in the late 2010s. He identifies himself as a constitutional conservative. He opposes abortion, supports legal gun ownership, and considers himself to be fiscally conservative. He also stated that he thinks the effects of climate change are minimal.
In the March 2020 Republican primary for North Carolina's 11th congressional district, Cawthorn finished second behind candidate Lynda Bennett. However, Bennett did not receive the required amount of the vote to avoid a runoff. Cawthorn subsequently won the June runoff overwhelmingly, a victory that was called an upset by the media.
Leading up to the November elections, Cawthorn made a number of controversial remarks and decisions. He stated that there was a large cartel along the Texan border that was kidnapping children to sell them as slaves, though he did not provide any evidence to back up this claim. He also made an attack website during his campaign focused on journalist Tom Fielder, who had written investigative pieces on Cawthorn. Cawthorn accused Fielder of working for "non-white males" and aiming to "ruin white males running for office." He later edited this text on the website and apologized for making dangerous and divisive remarks.
(Photo by Pete Marovich/Getty Images)
In November, Cawthorn defeated Democratic nominee Moe Davis and took office on January 3, 2021. He became the youngest Republican elected to the House of Representatives. Once in office, Cawthorn's controversial remarks and actions did not stop. He circulated conspiracy theories about the alleged fraud in the 2020 election and voted not to certify the Electoral College results. However, he later said that he accepted the results.
He has made comments about the emasculation of young men in America and accused politicians of trying to make everyone genderless and sexless. He celebrated the not-guilty verdict of the Kyle Rittenhouse trial and even offered Rittenhouse an internship in his office. At the beginning of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Cawthorn called Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky a thug. He also accused Washington politicians of being sexually perverted and participating in drug use in front of him.
Cawthorn made a point of focusing on communication during his time in office rather than legislating, saying he saw himself more of a messenger of the people than a legislator. He sought reelection in 2022 but lost renomination to Chuck Edwards, a state senator.
Personal Life
In December 2020, Cawthorn married Cristina Bayardelle, a competitive CrossFit athlete. They were first married in a civil ceremony in December before having an outdoor ceremony in April of 2021. In December of 2021, Cawthorn announced the couple would be getting a divorce.
In August of 2020, while Cawthorn was campaigning for Congress, several women accused him of sexual misconduct and sexual assault. Soon after, a group of Patrick Henry College alumni released a public letter in which they accused Cawthorn of sexually predatory behavior while he was a student there. Cawthorn disputed these allegations and said that many of the students did not personally know him. In February of 2021, BuzzFeed News released a report that found 20 people who said Cawthorn was known for harassing his female classmates during college.
In May of 2022, a video circulated online that showed Cawthorn naked in bed, making inappropriate gestures towards another man's face. Cawthorn said the video had been made years earlier between friends while they were being crass and said it was only being circulated in an attempt to blackmail him.
Cawthorn has faced a number of other legal issues. He has been charged with driving without a license and has twice been found to be in possession of a gun at an airport.
