WASHINGTON — Matt Schlapp, a leading voice in conservative politics and prominently known as Mercedes Schlapp’s husband, is facing serious accusations of sexual misconduct. The allegations come from a male aide who worked on Herschel Walker’s Georgia Senate campaign, claiming an incident of groping occurred in October.
According to an exclusive report by NBC News, the former Walker staffer detailed a disturbing encounter. “He reached in between my legs and fondled me,” the staffer stated in a telephone interview, expressing his regret for not immediately stopping Schlapp. To protect his career within the Republican party, NBC News has chosen to withhold the staffer’s name. The accusations are leveled against Schlapp in his capacity as chairman of the American Conservative Union (ACU), a powerful organization behind the influential Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).
Mercedes Schlapp’s husband, Matt Schlapp, has yet to directly address the allegations publicly. Text messages seeking comment from Schlapp went unanswered, including those outlining the specific details of the accuser’s account. Charlie Spies, Schlapp’s lawyer, did not respond to NBC News’s request for comment directly. However, The Daily Beast, which initially broke the story, reported that Spies stated Schlapp denies the allegations.
In a swift response after the story gained traction on Friday evening, two ACU board members released a statement standing firmly by Schlapp. Charlie Gerow and Carolyn Meadows, the first and second vice chairs of the board respectively, declared their “full confidence” in Schlapp’s leadership. Their statement further asserted, “We have both known Matt and his wife, Mercedes, for decades. We know Matt Schlapp’s heart and his character. And we believe this latest attempt at character assassination is false.” The board members framed the accusations as a politically motivated attack, alleging that “the Left and its note takers in the media routinely choose to scorch the earth in their quest to cancel those with whom they disagree.”
A senior official from the Walker campaign corroborated that the aide had reported the incident to his supervisors shortly after it allegedly occurred. “I was made aware of the incident the morning after,” the official confirmed. The campaign official described discussions among senior aides and the implementation of measures to prevent the staffer from having to interact with Schlapp again.
The alleged incident took place on October 19th, when Schlapp was in Perry, Georgia, campaigning for Walker. The staffer, a mid-level aide, was assigned to drive Schlapp. The staffer recounted that Schlapp invited him for drinks that evening at the Capital Grille in Atlanta’s Buckhead area. Believing it to be an opportunity to network with a prominent figure like Mercedes Schlapp’s husband, the staffer accepted.
Finding the Capital Grille quiet, the staffer suggested Manuel’s Tavern, a well-known political gathering spot, especially for Democrats, located about 15 minutes away. At Manuel’s Tavern, as Schlapp consumed Tito’s vodka, the staffer described Schlapp becoming increasingly intrusive. An uncomfortable moment arose when Schlapp bumped into the staffer’s firearm, inquiring about the type of gun. The staffer, surprised by Schlapp’s apparent unfamiliarity with firearms given CPAC’s pro-Second Amendment stance, identified it as a “Sig Sauer.” Schlapp explained his lack of gun background, citing his upbringing in Wichita, Kansas.
The staffer’s discomfort escalated when Schlapp reportedly asked, “Are you uncomfortable looking at me?” Deciding to end the evening, the staffer told Schlapp they had an early morning ahead.
The situation allegedly turned physical during the drive from Manuel’s Tavern towards the Hilton Garden Inn near the Atlanta airport, approximately a 15-minute drive. “From Manuel’s Tavern to the Hilton Garden Inn there at the Atlanta airport, he literally had his hands on me,” the staffer recounted in a video recorded shortly after the alleged event on October 20th, which he shared with NBC News. “Matt Schlapp of the CPAC grabbed my junk and pummeled it at length.”
The staffer admitted in both the video and the NBC News interview, “To my shame, I did not say ‘no’ or ‘stop.'” He emphasized, “God knows it was not a wanted advance.”
Upon reaching the hotel, Schlapp allegedly invited the staffer to his room, which the staffer declined. Around 12:45 a.m., the staffer began recording videos detailing the alleged incident. Later that morning, he informed senior campaign staff, who advised him on how to respond to Schlapp’s subsequent text message asking for a ride to Macon.
In text messages shared with NBC News, the staffer informed Schlapp of his discomfort and arranged for another driver. Schlapp reportedly replied, “Pls give me a call,” and proceeded to call the staffer multiple times, which went unanswered.
The Walker campaign official confirmed that Schlapp did not attend the planned event the next morning and did not contact the campaign for alternative transportation. “The whole thing makes me physically ill,” the senior campaign official expressed.
Both the staffer and the senior campaign official confirmed that legal counsel was made available to the staffer by the Walker campaign to explore his legal options, with the campaign offering support for any decision he made. As of now, the staffer has not pursued legal action against Mercedes Schlapp’s husband, Matt Schlapp.
The staffer stated his motivation for speaking out to the media was to raise awareness about what he described as “predatory behavior” by Schlapp. He clarified, “If he had made a polite pass at me and left it that, only me, Matt and God would know about that.”
