The Eric Swalwell governor race exit has shocked California politics as Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell withdraws from the governor race amid multiple sexual misconduct allegations. The Eric Swalwell governor race exit follows reports from a former staffer and additional accusations involving several women, leading to bipartisan pressure for resignation. Lawmakers, including Nancy Pelosi and Ro Khanna, have called for investigations, while 55 former staffers demanded accountability.
After a lot of pressure from political allies, staffers, and other lawmakers, Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell has officially dropped out of the race for governor of California. This is after serious sexual misconduct allegations. The announcement marks a big change in the already competitive election season.
Eric Swalwell said on X, “I am suspending my campaign for Governor.” He also said in the same statement, “To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am very sorry for the bad decisions I made in the past.” I will fight the serious, false claims that have been made against me, but that’s my fight, not a campaign’s.
Eric Swalwell’s exit from the governor’s race comes just days after a number of reports and accusations came to light, leading to calls from both parties for him to drop out of the race and possibly resign from Congress.
Eric Swalwell’s exit from the governor’s race comes after several accusations of sexual misconduct.
Eric Swalwell dropped out of the governor’s race after a report in the San Francisco Chronicle on Friday that included claims from a former staff member who worked in his congressional office from 2019 to 2021. The ex-employee said she had sex with Eric Swalwell and also said he raped her twice while she was drunk and unable to give her consent.
NBC News has not confirmed the claims on its own, but it has confirmed the woman’s name and work history. The Chronicle says that text messages the woman sent to a friend three days after one of the alleged incidents backed up the story. In those messages, she said she told Eric Swalwell to stop. The report also included confirmation from her then-boyfriend, who said she had told him about the event at the time. Also, it seems that her medical records show that she later asked for tests for STDs and pregnancy.
Eric Swalwell told the Chronicle that the claims were “false” and denied them.
After this, CNN said that four more women had accused Eric Swalwell of sexual misconduct. Ally Sammarco, a Democratic activist, said that Eric Swalwell sent her explicit pictures without her asking for them. CNN said it checked some of the stories by talking to people and looking over messages, but NBC News has not confirmed those claims on its own.
Eric Swalwell posted a video on social media in which he said, “These claims of sexual assault are completely false.” He said, “They didn’t happen.” They have never happened. And I will do everything I can to fight them.
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Even though he said he wouldn’t, the pressure on Eric Swalwell to leave the governor’s race grew quickly as more investigations and political responses came to light.
Eric Swalwell’s decision to leave the governor’s race put pressure on both parties.
There were strong reactions from both Democratic and Republican lawmakers after Eric Swalwell dropped out of the race for governor. A number of his own friends publicly told him to drop out of the race.
Reps. Jimmy Gomez and Adam Gray of California, who co-chair his campaign, were two of the first Democrats to ask him to drop out. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., who used to be Speaker of the House and has been a friend of Eric Swalwell for a long time, said, “This very sensitive issue needs to be looked into properly, with full openness and responsibility.” She said that this should not be part of a campaign for governor.
After looking over the reporting, Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., also took back his support.
A letter signed by 55 former congressional and campaign staffers asked Eric Swalwell to drop out of the race for governor and leave Congress on Sunday. The letter said, “We fully support our colleague, who showed great bravery in coming forward to tell her story.” We trust her.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office confirmed that it had started looking into the claims, which added to the pressure.
The Eric Swalwell governor race exit also got a lot of national attention as many lawmakers called for accountability. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., said, “I think he should resign,” and asked for investigations by both the police and the House Ethics Committee.
Eric Swalwell’s decision to leave the governor’s race shakes up the California election landscape.
The exit of Eric Swalwell from the governor’s race has changed the race a lot. The election will be held on June 2, and early voting starts on May 4. Swalwell was one of the top Democratic candidates in recent polls, often ranking among the best in a crowded field.
In California’s “top-two primary” system, all candidates, regardless of party, run on the same ballot. The top two candidates move on to the general election. Some Democrats had already said they were worried that a split field could lead to two Republicans moving on.
Other big Democratic candidates are billionaire Tom Steyer and former Rep. Katie Porter. Both of them are now expected to do better because Eric Swalwell is leaving.
Eric Swalwell has been in Congress since 2013 and has been very critical of President Donald Trump. He was also an impeachment manager during Trump’s trial after the Capitol riot on January 6.
His political career has also come under fire in the past, such as when the House Ethics Committee looked into his contact with someone who was thought to be linked to a Chinese spy in 2014. The committee did nothing, and Eric Swalwell has always said he did nothing wrong.
After the most recent accusations, both sides have stepped up their calls for resignation. Rep. Sam Liccardo and Rep. Jared Huffman also told him to leave Congress. There were also talks about House ethics standards that mentioned Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., said she would keep trying to kick Eric Swalwell out of the House, which would require a two-thirds majority vote.
The Eric Swalwell governor race exit is still a big political event with legal and electoral effects that will last for a long time.
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