Beloved Ex-GOP Rep. Arrested Days After Announcing Comeback

Former Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) was recently arrested in Florida, just a few days after it was announced that he would attempt to return to Congress. Cawthorn, 28, was taken into custody early on Wednesday morning at his home in Cape Coral after he failed to appear for a court date. The appearance was in connection with a citation he received last month for operating a vehicle without a valid driver’s license.

The former congressman’s representatives revealed that he “was arrested…for failure to appear for a routine traffic infraction.”

“Madison keeps a very busy schedule and, due to a scheduling misunderstanding, did not appear in court this morning,” his reps went on to say concerning the arrest. “Following processing, Madison was immediately released.”

Cawthorn was booked and then released on a $2,000 bond, according to information put out by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. The Republican is currently making preparations for a House bid in Florida’s 19th District.

The former congressman previously served as the representative for North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District for a single term. His time in office was marked by numerous scandals and accusations, including allegations that he was invited to orgies by other members of Congress.

Cawthorn speaks at the Turning Point Action Summit in 2020
Photo: Gage Skidmore

Cawthorn has suffered from a rash of traffic incidents. In October 2021, he was pulled over by law enforcement for allegedly traveling 89 mph in a 65 mph zone. Footage captured by the State Highway Patrol was unaware he wasn’t the registered owner of the vehicle he was driving.

“Cawthorn, who had enjoyed Donald Trump’s backing before being primaried in 2022, has also been busted twice attempting to carry a gun through airport security. In May 2022, he confirmed the authenticity of a bizarre video showing him, nude, dry-humping another man’s head. He said its release was part of a politically motivated hit campaign,” The Daily Beast reported.

The former congressman spoke at Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally on January 6, 2021. Several months later, he took a stand for those arrested for entering the Capitol building on that fateful day, going on to refer to those arrested as political prisoners.

In 2024, he was accused of tailgating a woman, which ultimately resulted in rear-ending a Florida Highway Patrol officer, though he did not receive any serious charges from the incident.

Cawthorn has been confined to a wheelchair since the age of 18 after a car accident left him paralyzed.