Madison Cawthorn & wife Cristina Bayardelle to divorce after less than a year married as Republican blames job for split
MADISON Cawthorn has announced he is divorcing his wife of less than a year and has blamed his role in Congress for the split.
The Republican, 26, split up with Cristina Bayardelle after the pair were married in April.
Cawthorn - who became the youngest Republican ever elected to Congress in 2020 - said in a statement that "overnight their lives changed."
He added: "When my wife Cristina and I were engaged, I was not a member of Congress.
"I felt called to serve and we both agreed that I should run. Our victory was unprecedented.
"But overnight, our lives changed.
"That change has been both hectic and difficult. It's neither the pace nor the lifestyle we had planned for."
First-time lawmaker Cawthorn is seen as a rising star in the Republican party who won North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District during the 2020 election.
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Cawthorn was left disabled after a serious car crash in 2014.
He was riding as a passenger in a BMW X3 SUV near Daytona Beach, Florida when his friend Bradley Ledford fell asleep behind the wheel.
The SUV crashed into a concrete barrier while Cawthorn's feet were on the dashboard.
The injuries from the accident left Cawthorn partially paralyzed from the waist down, and he now uses a wheelchair.
His wife Cristina is an American fitness model, athlete, fitness instructor, personal trainer, and entrepreneur from Florida.
After their marriage Cawthorn wrote online: "On April 3rd of 2014 my life changed. A car accident put me in a wheelchair and dashed my hopes for the future.
"On April 3rd of 2021, my life has once again changed.
"Marrying Cristina Bayardelle, now Cristina Cawthorn is the greatest honor, privilege and adventure of my life."
On Wednesday he said: "While it was an enormously difficult decision, Cristina and I have mutually decided to divorce.
"We ask for privacy as we work through this privately."
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