Rep. Chuck Edwards and his wife are selling all six of their McDonalds franchises, as the Republican lawmaker faces a tight re-election race in North Carolina’s 11th District.
Edwards, who is running against Democrat Jamie Ager in the November election, said in a statement Monday that he and his wife Teresa are making the move to “devote even greater attention to public service.”
"McDonald's changed the course of my life," Chuck Edwards said. "It taught me the value of hard work, personal responsibility, teamwork, and serving others. Those lessons have shaped every chapter of my life — from running a small business to serving in the North Carolina Senate and now representing the people of Western North Carolina in Congress."
The congressman first worked behind the counter of a McDonalds at age 16. He went on to join the company’s management team. Later, he and his wife bought several of the fast food chain’s restaurants in western North Carolina, according to a biography on Edwards’s former state Senate campaign website.
Teresa Edwards assumed day-to-day management of the restaurants after Chuck Edwards was elected to the state Senate in 2016.
The new owners of the restaurants are Christine and Chris Nevant, who Edwards’s congressional office said are long-time friends of the family.
Chuck Edwards has represented the 11th District in Congress since 2023. He currently faces a House ethics investigation over alleged inappropriate behavior toward female members of his congressional staff. Edwards denies any wrongdoing.
