Congressman Eric Swalwell (D-CA)
Yuri Gripusreuter
Congressman Eric Swalwell announced Sunday night that he is suspending his campaign for California governor following sexual misconduct allegations against the Democratic lawmaker.
“To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I deeply apologize for the errors in judgment I made in the past,” Swalwell said in a post on X announcing the suspension of his campaign.
“I will fight against the serious false allegations that have been made, but that is my fight, not my campaign,” said Swalwell, a married father of three.
Mr. Swalwell’s announcement came as calls for fellow Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom to withdraw from the race came a day after the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office announced it was investigating allegations that Mr. Swalwell sexually assaulted one of his accusers in New York City in April 2024.
In a statement Sunday, more than 50 former Swalwell staffers called on him to resign from the Legislature and withdraw from the gubernatorial race.
“No one is above the law,” he said in a statement, according to the New York Times. “Not a member of Congress. Not a gubernatorial candidate. Not anyone.”
Swalwell was a front-runner in the gubernatorial race, but the San Francisco Chronicle on Friday reported that a woman who worked on his legislative staff for about two years claims that he had a sexual relationship with her while he was her boss, and that he sexually assaulted her twice when she was too drunk to consent.
Shortly after The Chronicle reported the story, CNN reported that in addition to the accuser, “three other women who spoke with CNN also alleged various types of sexual misconduct by the Democratic congressman, including that Mr. Swalwell sent unsolicited explicit messages and nude photos.”
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