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Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Dublin, dropped a lawsuit against Trump ally Bill Pulte on Friday but seemed poised to win a case against him in Sacramento.<\/p>\n
Anna Moneymaker<\/p>\n
Getty Images<\/p>\n
Rep. Eric Swalwell voluntarily dismissed a lawsuit Friday targeted at one of President Donald Trump\u2019s top housing officials, Bill Pulte, who\u2019d reportedly ordered an investigation into Swalwell\u2019s mortgage.<\/p>\n
Also on Friday, a Sacramento judge suggested she would likely reject an effort by a conservative filmmaker to keep Swalwell, D-Dublin, off of the ballot as a candidate for governor.<\/p>\n
Both lawsuits relate to claims over Swalwell\u2019s residence, a topic that has become a focus both for the Trump administration and Tom Steyer, a Democratic rival in the governor\u2019s race.<\/p>\n
Swalwell sued Pulte in November, after NBC News reported Pulte sought an investigation into the Democrat<\/a> for alleged mortgage fraud. NBC reported the claims against Swalwell centered on claims he misrepresented a Washington, D.C., home as his primary residence. Pulte leveled similar claims against several other perceived political enemies of Trump, none of which have held up in court.<\/p>\n Swalwell\u2019s complaint called the accusations \u201cpatently false,\u201d saying that he was a permanent resident of California. He claimed Pulte had deliberately leaked the claims to reporters and social media influencers, leading to \u201creputational harm, legal expenses, and mental and emotional distress.\u201d<\/p>\n In a statement, Swalwell\u2019s campaign spokesperson Micah Beasley argued the Democrats\u2019 lawsuit successfully dissuaded Pulte and the Trump administration from following through on their threats.<\/p>\n \u201cWe called his bluff. He never brought it,\u201d Beasley said in an email. \u201cCase closed.\u201d<\/p>\n Separately, Sacramento Superior Court Judge Shelleyanne W.L. Chang signaled she\u2019s skeptical that the Democrat should be dropped from the ballot in the California governor\u2019s race over claims he doesn\u2019t live in the state.<\/p>\n Conservative filmmaker Joel Gilbert filed a lawsuit in January claiming that there was no evidence Swalwell actually lived in the state and that therefore he was ineligible to run for the office under the state Constitution. The Constitution requires governors to have lived in the state for at least five years, though the secretary of state has argued for years that provision is unenforceable and violates the U.S. Constitution.<\/p>\n Swalwell and his wife are registered to vote in California, listing their residence as a Livermore home owned by his former chief of staff Tim Sbranti\u2019s sister-in-law. Sbranti told The Sacramento Bee earlier this month<\/a> that the Democrat rents a room in the home and stays there when in his East Bay district. The homeowners and their child also live in the three-bedroom house.<\/p>\n The questions over Swalwell\u2019s residency have been amplified by Steyer, a billionaire who\u2014along with Swalwell and former Rep. Katie Porter\u2014ranks in the top tier of Democrats in recent gubernatorial polling.<\/p>\n In a tentative ruling Friday, Chang said Gilbert had failed to prove Swalwell\u2019s domicile was outside of California, noting that California law \u201cconclusively presumes\u201d that elected congressional representatives live at the address listed in their voter registration affidavit.<\/p>\n \u201cBillionaire Tom Steyer\u2019s attempt to cozy up with MAGA conspiracy theorists and steal the election has been stopped by the courts,\u201d Swalwell said in a statement. \u201cMy California residency was never in doubt. And now the courts have agreed.\u201d<\/p>\n The ruling is still tentative, pending a hearing Monday when Gilbert will try to change Chang\u2019s mind. In an interview, Gilbert said he\u2019ll appeal if Chang doesn\u2019t decide in his favor.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s a total ruse that Swalwell has any permanent residence in California,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n This story was originally published March 20, 2026 at 4:26 PM.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n
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