Republican congressman Cory Mills reportedly retreated to a $2 million rented beachfront property in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, immediately after losing his primary for Florida's 7th Congressional District, where sources said he was spending time with a 27-year-old former aspiring model. His disappearance from public view following the defeat has reportedly alarmed his own staff, who say he made no public statement and missed work obligations, adding a further layer of turmoil to a political career already marred by controversy.

Mills, 46, lost the GOP primary earlier in August to local TV reporter Ryan Elijah, and sources say he was seen the following day sitting on the beach for the entire day with Catherine Chils, described as a long-standing companion of three years; Chils denies she was there and says the pair are just friends. Staffers said his tendency to go incommunicado is not unusual, noting he keeps a campaign bus he sometimes sleeps in, and he skipped several scheduled media appearances in the campaign's final stretch. His two terms in Congress had already been overshadowed by allegations including domestic violence, revenge porn threats, an assault investigation that was later closed, a lapsed restraining order obtained by an ex-girlfriend, and an ongoing House Ethics Committee probe into alleged campaign finance violations, all of which Mills denies.