Some of Rep. Eric Swalwell‘s allies in the race for California governor — as well as his fellow Democratic candidates — called on the congressmember to drop out on Friday, following allegations of sexual assault made by one of his former staffers.
The ex-staffer described instances of sexual harassment and assault during her time working for Swalwell in his Castro Valley district office, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle on Friday afternoon, April 10. In one instance, she alleged that she met Swalwell for drinks in 2024. She said she became so intoxicated that she blacked out for portions of the night, but recalled telling him “no,” yet he allegedly forced himself on her, she said.
Swalwell, through a spokesperson, denied the allegations and said he would “defend our decades of service against these lies.”
Still, Democrats were quick to praise the staffer for coming forward and call on Swalwell to exit the race and/or resign from Congress.
Among those is Rep. Jimmy Gomez, who in December was named campaign chair for Swalwell. The Los Angeles Democrat quit the campaign Friday afternoon shortly after the Chronicle’s story was published.
“My involvement in any campaign begins and ends with trust. I cannot in good conscience remain in any role with this campaign, and I am stepping down from it effective immediately,” said Gomez.
“The congressman should leave the race now so there can be full accountability without doubt, distraction or delay,” he said.
The California Teachers Association, which endorsed Swalwell in March, also said it was suspending its support. Another backer, the California Federation of Labor Unions, AFL-CIO, said it “is acting urgently to follow our constitutionally prescribed democratic process to determine next steps.”
Calling the allegations “deeply disturbing,” California Democratic Party Chair Rusty Hicks said, “any person engaged in misconduct must take responsibility and be held accountable for their actions — including a Member of Congress and candidate for Governor.”
“My call for all — repeat, all — candidates for Governor to ‘honestly assess the viability of their candidacy and campaign’ still stands,” Hicks said, referring to his plea to lower polling Democrats to drop out of a crowded campaign for governor to avoid a lockout by two Republican contenders. “In fact, that call is more important now than ever before.”
While there has been a decided lack of a real frontrunner in the campaign for California’s next chief executive, Swalwell has been polling toward the top of the pack.
A UC Berkeley Institute of Government Studies survey of registered voters in March showed former Fox News Host Steve Hilton in the lead with 17% support, followed closely by fellow Republican, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, at 16%.
Then came the Democratic candidates: Both Swalwell and former Rep. Katie Porter had 13% each, followed by billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer at 10%.
From there, former U.S. Housing and Human Service Secretary Xavier Becerra, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, former L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and former state Controller Betty Yee polled at 5% or lower.
Swalwell’s fellow Democrats in the race were quick to release statements on Friday praising the former staffer — who was not named in the Chronicle report because of a policy against outing alleged victims of sexual abuse — with some calling on him to end his gubernatorial campaign.
“Eric Swalwell should be nowhere near any position of power, much less be the governor of California,” said Steyer. “He must resign from Congress and drop out of the race immediately.”
Becerra said: “These horrific allegations do not reflect the values of California, especially not someone who seeks to be its leader. Eric Swalwell should suspend his campaign and allow a clear process of accountability to play out.”
“To the survivor who risked everything to come forward — I believe you. To the Democratic Party — you’d better hold him accountable. If we don’t, we have no credibility asking anyone else to do the same. To (Swalwell) — drop out,” Mahan said in a post on social media.
“Eric Swalwell needs to drop out of the race for governor and resign from Congress,” said Thurmond. “California cannot have a governor who treats the people who work for him as something to take advantage of. We cannot have a governor who silences victims.”
“Now that victims are finally being heard, it has become abundantly clear that Eric Swalwell must withdraw from the governor’s race and immediately resign from Congress,” said Villaraigosa. “I’m calling on him to live by the words that he has repeatedly professed, and encourage all victims to come forward to speak freely without fear of threats or legal retribution from Mr. Swalwell, so that he can face accountability for his alleged actions.
Yee said: “The accusations outlined against Rep. Eric Swalwell are sickening. He needs to withdraw from the governor’s race and resign from Congress, immediately. Let the women speak.”
Porter, meanwhile, stopped just short of telling Swalwell to exit the race. A spokesperson for her campaign did not immediately answer questions about whether she would do so.
“The allegations against Congressman Swalwell are horrifying. I’m thinking of the courageous women who have come forward to share their stories. We believe you, and we stand with you,” said Porter.
Ian Calderon, the former Assembly majority leader who backed Swalwell after ending his own campaign for governor, said Swalwell should resign from Congress as well as drop out of the race.
Hilton, though, took the opportunity to slam “career politicians” and unions.
“It’s incredible to me that Eric Swalwell thought he could run for Governor of California while all this was going on,” said Hilton, who was recently endorsed by President Donald Trump, who was found liable for sexual abuse in 2023 and has been accused of sexual misconduct and assault by multiple women.
“It shows the complete contempt these career politicians have for the public,” Hilton continued. “It’s also incredible that the big unions that run California picked Swalwell as their puppet, knowing full well that all this was out there.”
Swalwell has denied the accusations.
“These allegations are false and come on the eve of an election against the frontrunner for governor,” he said in a statement. “For nearly 20 years, I have served the public — as a prosecutor and a congressman and have always protected women. I will defend myself with the facts and where necessary bring legal action. My focus in the coming days is to be with my wife and children and defend our decades of service against these lies.”