Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) on Sunday suspended his campaign for California governor, soon after Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office said it was investigating Swalwell in connection with a sexual assault allegation from a former staffer.
“I am suspending my campaign for Governor,” Swalwell wrote in a post on the social platform X. “To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past. I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made — but that’s my fight, not a campaign’s.”
A former staffer alleged that after a night of drinking with Swalwell in New York City in April 2024, she woke up in a hotel bed to him having sex with her, CNN reported.
Swalwell slammed media reports who wrote about the allegation, which he has denied, on Friday.
“These allegations are false and come on the eve of an election against the frontrunner for governor,” Swalwell said in a statement Friday. “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.”
Some of Swalwell’s congressional office staffers and gubernatorial campaign members released an unsigned letter that said reports of the allegations were “abhorrent, beneath the dignity of those serving in public office and betrays the trust of all Californians,” Politico reported.
A growing number of lawmakers have asked Swalwell to resign following the allegations.
Separately, the Department of Homeland Security on Sunday said they were probing Swalwell over an allegation that he hired a nanny illegally.
