BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) — Temperatures in Central Europe soared to extreme levels again on Wednesday with Slovakia and Austria both having their hottest day on record.
For Slovakia, it was also the third time this summer that temperatures reached a record high. The country's south recorded temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in the latest heat wave, with a new record of 41.4 C (106.5 F) in the town of Kamenica nad Hronom in southern Slovakia, the Slovak Meteorological Institute said.
The previous records were set on two days — June 29 and June 30 — with 41.0 C (105.8 F) in the town of Turna nad Bodvou, and 41.3 C (106.3 F) in Kamenica nad Hronom.
That smashed a 2007 high of 40.3 C (104.5 F) in the town of Hurbanovo.
The night of Tuesday into Wednesday was also the hottest on record, with 28.4 degrees Celsius (83 F) in the town of Skalica in southwestern Slovakia.
In Austria, the all-time high of 41.2 C (106.1 F) was measured in Bad Deutsch-Altenburg near the border with Slovakia, beating a 41.0 C (105.8 F) record from the previous day, the GeoSphere meteorological service said.
The Czech Republic and Hungary had also recorded their all-time highs earlier this summer.
This year, Europe has been sweltering under an exceptionally hot and arid summer, with tinderbox conditions setting off unprecedented fires that have forced hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate homes and vacation spots.
The continent is the world’s fastest-warming, with temperatures increasing twice as fast as the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.
A firefighter rests from battling wildfires, in the Lège-Cap-Ferret region, western France, Thursday, July 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Caroline Blumberg)
A man splashes water on a horse to cool it off next to a bank of sand on the Danube River, as usually submerged areas are exposed due to extreme low levels of the water following an extended period of drought in Roseti, Romania, Wednesday, July 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Embattled North Carolina Republican congressman Chuck Edwards withdrew from his reelection campaign on Wednesday, two days after the House Ethics Committee recommended he be censured for unprofessional and inappropriate conduct toward two young female aides in his office.
The 65-year-old Edwards, who is serving his second term, said that he made the decision to drop his reelection bid after “much prayer and reflection” and that he would complete the current term.
The Ethics Committee recommended the censure, an act registering its deep disapproval of a lawmaker’s conduct that does not meet the threshold for expulsion, on Monday. The panel highlighted numerous examples of actions it considered improper, including Edwards providing the young women with lavish and recurrent gifts, making comments regarding their appearance and dress, inviting them to intimate dinners and vacations, and sending notes regarding his affection.
Edwards denied that any of his conduct was intended as a sexual or romantic advance, but the committee said his behavior would “lead a reasonable observer to interpret it as such.”
“Serving Western North Carolina has been the honor of my life,” Edwards said in a post on X. “Thank you for your trust, prayers, and support. God bless WNC and America.”
North Carolina Republican Sen. Ted Budd said Edwards "did the right thing by withdrawing from the race.”
In a statement, the senator said the congressman has been “a fighter for the people of Western North Carolina as they work to recover from the impacts of Hurricane Helene, and I know he’ll continue to advocate for disaster funding for the remainder of his time in D.C.”
Budd’s spokesman, Christian McMullen, said the senator found the House Ethics Committee's report on Edwards “deeply concerning" and believed the congressman already faced a significant uphill battle trailing in the polls even before the report's publication. He declined to say whether the senator asked his colleague to step aside, saying the senator does not discuss private conversations.
The Ethic Committee described Edwards' actions as “beyond inappropriate” but said it found no evidence that he explicitly propositioned any people under his employ or engaged in any sexual activity with them.
In a response to the Ethics Committee's report, Edwards’ attorneys argued that the committee’s findings “exonerate” the congressman. His attorneys said the recommendation of censure was an “extraordinarily harsh and infrequent punishment” based on vague standards, “not based on a direct violation of House rules addressing sexual misconduct.”
State law requires Edwards to put his intent to withdraw in writing and submit it to the state Board of Elections before ballots are mailed to overseas voters and the military. The Republican executive committee in Edwards' 11th Congressional District will meet next week to select a nominee for the midterm election.
“The people of Western North Carolina deserve a strong conservative voice on the ballot this November, and our Party is prepared to move through this process quickly and efficiently,” state GOP Chairman Jason Simmons said in a statement.
The political upheaval in North Carolina adds to the difficulty Republicans face as they work to keep their slim majority control of the House this fall.
House Speaker Mike Johnson is already juggling other disruptions, including in Ohio, where Republican Rep. Max Miller faces his own ethics investigation in a district that typically has been favorable to the GOP.
Johnson, R-La., has remained upbeat about his party's chances of keeping House control, but he can only afford to lose a few seats that will make the difference between which party holds the powerful speaker's gavel.
The seat Edwards will be vacating encompasses much of the rural western part of the state but also progressive Asheville, and it has been one to watch as a bellwether in the race for the House, as Republicans and Democrats battle for party control.
Even before the decision by Edwards to step aside, election analysts had shifted their assessment of the race from one that was more favorable to Republicans to more competitive.
Democrats, who have nominated farmer Jamie Ager as their candidate, have poured attention on the district as one to flip to their column.
Republicans had wanted Edwards to step aside and believe the seat is still winnable for the GOP, hoping to mount a fresh campaign with a new candidate.
Follow the AP’s coverage of the 2026 election at https://apnews.com/projects/elections-2026/.
FILE - Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., listens to testimony as the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Oversight holds a field hearing on violent crime in Charlotte, N.C., Sept. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond, File)
