Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell has suspended his campaign for California governor following a wave of sexual assault and misconduct allegations from several women, which were first reported on Friday by the San Francisco Chronicle and CNN. The House Ethics Committee announced Monday that it’s now launching an investigation into the allegations.
On Sunday, Swalwell announced he was ending his gubernatorial bid, posting a statement on X acknowledging what he described as “mistakes in judgment” while calling the allegations “false.”
“I am suspending my campaign for Governor,” Swalwell wrote. “To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past. I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made — but that’s my fight, not a campaign’s.”
The allegations
According to reports from CNN and the San Francisco Chronicle last week, a woman who previously worked in Swalwell’s district office alleged that she had sexual encounters with the congressman, which included exchanging sexually explicit photos and a request for her to perform oral sex on him.
The ex-staffer also alleges that Swalwell sexually assaulted her twice when she was too intoxicated to consent. The first time she says it happened was in 2019, when Swalwell invited her and some friends to join him at a restaurant in Pleasanton, Calif. The woman says she became so intoxicated that she doesn’t remember how she ended up naked in Swalwell’s hotel bed.
The woman alleges a second incident with Swalwell in 2024 after she attended an awards ceremony in New York City when they went to a bar after the event. She only remembers flashes of what she said followed, including being in Swalwell’s hotel room, him on top of her, trying to push him off and telling him no. A week after the alleged assault, the woman said she got pregnancy and STD tests and told the physician’s assistant what happened.
CNN also reported on various sexual misconduct allegations from three additional women, including one who said she received unsolicited explicit messages and nude photos.
Swalwell’s response
Swalwell has repeatedly denied the women’s allegations. “These allegations of sexual assault are flat false,” the congressman posted Saturday in a video on Instagram. “They did not happen. They have never happened, and I will fight them with everything that I have. They also come on the eve of an election, where I have been the frontrunner candidate for governor in California.”
Before Swalwell exited the gubernatorial race, an Emerson College/Inside California Politics poll from March indicated he was leading the Democratic candidates at 17%. And a polling average of gubernatorial surveys indicated that Swalwell was gaining momentum.
Response and investigations
Since reports of the allegations surfaced, several high-profile Democrats have withdrawn their support for the congressman and publicly urged him to step down from his campaign. On April 10, House Democratic leaders, including Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Whip Katherine Clark and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, called for a “swift investigation” into the allegations and called on Swalwell to end his bid for governor.
“This is unacceptable of anyone — certainly not an elected official — and must be taken seriously,” the joint statement said. “All perpetrators of sexual assault and harassment must be held accountable.”
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also advised Swalwell to end his campaign, according to her spokesperson.
Now, a growing number of Democrats have also called for Swalwell to resign from Congress, including Reps. Pramila Jayapal, Ro Khanna, Johnny Olszewski and Eugene Vindman. An April 12 open letter signed by more than 50 of Swalwell’s ex-staffers also called on him to resign from Congress, saying the allegations against their former boss are “serious, credible, and demand accountability.”
If Swalwell were to be expelled by his congressional colleagues, it would require a two-thirds majority vote.
The House Ethics Committee announced on Monday that it’s opening an investigation “and will gather additional information regarding the allegations that Representative Eric Swalwell violated the Code of Official Conduct or any law, rule, regulation, or other applicable standard of conduct in the performance of his duties or the discharge of his responsibilities, with respect to allegations that he may have engaged in sexual misconduct, including towards an employee working under his supervision.”
The Manhattan district attorney’s office is reportedly investigating the sexual assault allegations against Swalwell stemming from the allegation that he sexually assaulted his former staffer after the awards event in 2024.
