In October 2011, Politico reported that two female employees had complained about inappropriate behavior by Herman Cain during his tenure at the National Restaurant Association. The women reportedly accepted financial settlements from the association which barred them from discussing their allegations further.[43] Cain's campaign initially refused comment,[44] but subsequently acknowledged that the accusations had been made.[45] Cain strongly denied any impropriety, stating: "I have never sexually harassed anyone and those accusations are totally false." He initially denied being aware of any financial settlement with the accusers, but later accepted that some form of payment had been made by the Restaurant Association. He described the allegations as a "witch hunt".

The Cain campaign hired attorney L. Lin Wood to head a team responding to the allegations. Wood warned that any other women coming forward with allegations would face intense scrutiny and might also be subject to legal action, but said he did not intend to scare anyone away from doing so.

On November 3, 2011, it was reported that a third woman had stated that Cain had commented on her attractiveness and invited her up to his corporate apartment.