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Cawthorn responds to sexual assault allegations BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER n Aug. 13 Instagram post alleges improper behavior by North Carolina Republican congressional candidate Madison Cawthorn during a date six years ago, and although Cawthorn acknowledges the incident and that his actions were inappropriate, he says his accuser is being used by Democrats as an election-year tool. “The reason I am now choosing to speak is because Madison is running for North Carolina’s 11th District seat, and is on the path to being the youngest member of Congress,” wrote Katrina Aldona, Cawthorn’s accuser. “I believe that when you choose to be in the public eye, you should also be prepared to own up to your past mistakes.” Aldona begins by saying that it has “neither been an easy nor a hasty decision” to come forward, but that she’s contemplated the experience many times in the intervening six years. “My initial thoughts then were that I was simply put in an uncomfortable situation and would learn from it in the future,” she wrote. “The severity of this situation did not come to light until many years later when I shared with close friends, and came to understand that what took place was not in any way right, nor was it an isolated incident.” Her story begins in 2014, when she was 17 years old and Cawthorn was 19. According to Aldona, she and Cawthorn were members of the same Christian homeschool community and that he’d asked her out on a date over social media. Together they drove to a secluded field, where they enjoyed a bonfire until Cawthorn allegedly
Smoky Mountain News
August 19-25, 2020
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directed the conversation to sexual topics, which made Aldona uncomfortable. The situation escalated when Cawthorn asked her to sit on his lap. She said she felt “pressured and unsure of how to say no,” so she complied. Cawthorn tried to kiss her, and she rebuffed his advance. Cawthorn repeated the overture, Aldona said, so she pulled away and became entangled in his chair. The evening ended, and Aldona never went out with Cawthorn again. “I remember going on that date with her,” Cawthorn told The Smoky Mountain News on Aug. 15. “I think it was about six or seven years ago. And you know, that was probably the first date I ever went on after my car accident. If I ever made her feel uncomfortable or unsafe, you know, it was never my intention. We went on a date, we had dinner. Then we went by a campfire. I think we were roasting S’mores.” Cawthorn admits trying to kiss Aldona. “I can tell you that I have respect for every single woman, I believe in the necessity of consent,” he said. “I did try and kiss her just very normal, just in a flirtatious way. As soon as I realized that she didn’t want to — I think she pulled back a little bit — the date was over and we continued to sit around the fire for quite a while. I drove her back to her car and everything was normal. I realized she didn’t want to pursue a romantic relationship and so I don’t think I talked to her very much after that.” Fast forward to February 2020. In the midst of a contentious Republican primary for the 11th Congressional District seat left vacant by former Rep. Mark Meadows, Aldona said she received a text from Cawthorn. “He began by stating that he didn’t remember all of the details of the occur-
Congressional candidate Madison Cawthorn has come under scrutiny for his behavior on a date six years ago. Cory Vaillancourt photo rence,” Aldona wrote. “He followed with an insincere apology, stating that he did remember attempting to kiss me even after I made it clear I wasn’t interested, excusing it with ‘I thought you were playing coy’ and ‘I can see in hindsight how that was over the line.’” Aldona noted that the message, which Cawthorn acknowledges, came “… 6 years after the fact, when his political career is now at stake and he faces the possibility of public scrutiny.” Aldona said she didn’t respond. “I reached out to her and said, ‘Hey, I just heard that this is how you felt,’” Cawthorn said. “Obviously if I made her feel that way, that’s something I would never want to have happen. That’s something that’s awful, so I wanted to reach out to her just to see if I could
apologize, see how she felt. And it just, it made me, made me feel sad.” Aldona said she’s questioned herself and her story, but she’s never forgotten how the experience left her feeling threatened, belittled and unsettled. “No, I was not raped. Yes, it could have been much worse,” she wrote. “I don’t feel as if I’m a victim. And perhaps that is just one result of society constantly invalidating those who choose to say anything.” In speaking to a friend about the incident recently, Aldona said she was told that “Sexual assault isn’t relative [and] it’s bad no matter what extent and should be taken seriously.” She also wrote that as she’s continued to date into adulthood
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