‘The Bachelorette’: Everything We Know About The Upcoming 20th Season

The Bachelorette will return for its 20th season this summer, and Charity Lawson will be leading the helm! Charity was confirmed to be the next star of The Bachelorette during the March 14 Women Tell All special, which aired following her elimination from The Bachelor. Charity was sent home by Zach Shallcross after she introduced him to her family and told him that she was falling in love with him on her hometown date.

During her time on The Bachelor, Charity opened up to Zach about the difficulties of her past emotionally abusive relationship, where she was cheated on. She admitted that it had been hard to let someone new in after the tumultuous relationship, but with Zach, she was able to let her guard down and found she was ready to be in love again. Although things didn’t work out with Zach, the experience propelled Charity towards her own journey to finding her forever person.

Who Is The Next Bachelorette?

Charity Lawson is the next star of The Bachelorette. “Following her heartbreaking departure after her hometown date on Zach Shallcross’ season of The Bachelor, Charity Lawson’s journey to find love will continue when she steps in as the leading woman for the upcoming 20th season of The Bachelorette,” ABC confirmed.

Charity got the news at the end of February when she filmed the Women Tell All special, but the footage did not air until March 14. “I’m feeling so many emotions,” she gushed after she found out. “I’m feeling so happy, so grateful and I’m so ready to get engaged to the right person. I can’t wait to show little girls that look like me that to be in a position like this is possible. I know I’ll be making a lot of people proud.”

After being eliminated from The Bachelor, Charity took to Instagram to reveal why she’s ready to take this next step. “Going into this journey, I had no idea what I was walking into,” she wrote. “But wow, was it an experience of a lifetime. I was challenged and pushed to a level of vulnerability that I didn’t know was possible for myself. Through the highs and lows, I grew as a person and was able to discover depths of myself and that is the true victory.”

Who Is Charity Lawson?

Viewers got to know Charity on The Bachelor. “She stole America’s heart with her confidence, compassion for helping others and magnetic smile,” ABC’s press release confirmed. “Audiences saw Lawson open herself up to finding love by taking risks, all while supporting those around her. After her emotional exit, she solidified Bachelor Nation’s trust in her genuine desire to find love.”

Charity, who worked as a Child and Family Therapist before The Bachelorette gig, turned 27 in December 2022. She left her position as a Child Advocacy Center Therapist in Auburn Alabama in March 023, according to her LinkedIn. Before leaving her job to find love, Charity had worked there since July 2021.

Charity is a graduate from Auburn University, where she received a Bachelors of Science and Rehabilitation and Disability in 2018. She also has a Master’s Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Auburn, which she received in May 2022. While Charity went to school in Alabama and now lives there, she was born as a Georgia girl. Her hometown is in Columbus, Georgia, and that’s where she took Zach when she introduced him to her family.

So, what is Charity looking for in partner? “As the Bachelorette, Lawson is searching for a life partner who loves dogs, thrifting and a good tailgate; but, above all else, is honest, empathetic and values her for who she is,” ABC shared. “With parents who have been married over 47 years, Lawson has been instilled with the confidence of knowing what she deserves and is eager to find a lasting love matching their example.

When Is Season 20 of ‘The Bachelorette’?

ABC has not confirmed a premiere date for season 20 of The Bachelorette yet. However, the network did say that the series is coming “this summer.” It is likely that Charity will begin filming her season before the end of March 2023.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, The Bachelorette generally began airing in mid to late May. However, scheduling changed amidst the pandemic.  With the 2020 production schedule pushed back due to lockdown, season 16 of The Bachelorette, which starred Clare Crawley and Tayshia Adams, did not film until late summer, so it aired in the fall of that year. Season 17 was more back on track with a June 7 premiere date for Katie Thurston’s season. The show did something unprecedented that year, though, and aired a second season in the fall of 2021, with Michelle Young at the helm. The show’s most recent season (19), which starred both Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia, did not premiere until July 11.

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