Rep. Eric Swalwell suspended his California gubernatorial bid on Sunday night, just two days after multiple women detailed sexual assault and misconduct allegations against the Democrat.
“To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past,” Swalwell wrote on X. “I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made — but that’s my fight, not a campaign’s.”
Back in Washington, Swalwell will likely face a vote on his expulsion from the House this week. Numerous members of the Democratic caucus have called for Swalwell to resign, and have expressed support for his expulsion, along with Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales — who admitted to having a sexual relationship with a staffer who later died by suicide.
Swalwell, a seven-term congressman from the Bay Area, entered the race for governor in November 2025 with high-profile backing from many of his colleagues in the California delegation. He leaned into his role as House manager during President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial and as someone who would fight against Trump, fighting a crowded jungle primary in the state and was seen as a frontrunner.
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He faced intense pressure to drop his bid from his own colleagues and Democratic leadership after multiple outlets, including NOTUS, reported details of sexual misconduct from the Democratic congressman and multiple women came forward with stories of Swalwell repeatedly sending them explicit messages including unsolicited photos of his penis.
Swalwell’s exit narrows a Democratic field that still includes billionaire Tom Steyer, former Rep. Katie Porter, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, among others.
On Friday, the San Francisco Chronicle first reported that an ex-staffer accused the California Democrat of sexually assaulting her twice — once in 2019 and once in 2024 — while she was intoxicated. The staffer confirmed to NOTUS she made the allegations. CNN published a story later on Friday detailing stories from four separate women about their encounters with Swalwell.
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