Former Sen. Martha McSally says she was sexually assaulted on Wednesday

Former U.S. Sen. Martha McSally disclosed that she was sexually assaulted while out running on Wednesday.

In a video posted on social media, McSally recounted that a man approached her from behind, engulfing her "in a bear hug, and he molested and fondled me until I fought him off."

"I ran after him, I threw my water bottle at him, and I chased him into the brush, where he was then hiding as I called 911 and waited for the police to come. I don't think they found him," she said.

A Council Bluffs Police Department press release notes that "McSally lost sight of the suspect prior to officers arriving. After a check of the area the suspect was not located."

In a Thursday post, McSally expressed her gratitude toward law enforcement, writing, "I very much appreciate local law enforcement and their efforts to keep the community safe and find my attacker. More on that later when appropriate."

"As I was sitting in the airport waiting to board my flight, I was tweaking my slides for my speech today. A wave of emotion came up. I didn’t push it away. Tears came. I didn't care what people around me thought. This is my journey," she noted. "The emotion was sorrow or sadness. Understandable. One of many that will arise in the days ahead. I felt it, experienced it with compassion, and let it pass. I didn’t resist it, shame it or push it down. But I didn't feed it."

McSally served as a U.S. senator from early January 2019 until early December 2020.

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