Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., announced Sunday that he would be suspending his California gubernatorial campaign due to allegations of sexual misconduct, which he has denied.
“I am suspending my campaign for Governor,” Swalwell announced on X on Sunday. “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.”
Swalwell’s woes began when the San Francisco Chronicle released a bombshell report on April 10 in which an unnamed former female staffer claimed Swalwell sexually assaulted her twice when she was too intoxicated to consent.
Hours later, CNN published a report that included sexual misconduct allegations from three other women.
In response to these claims, Swalwell posted a video to X that night, stating, “These allegations are flat false. And I will fight them.”
In response to Swalwell’s video denying the allegations, social media users claimed Swalwell was being hypocritical. A tweet Swalwell made in 2018 during the #MeToo movement said, “Support survivors. Believe survivors. We are here for you. Hands off IX.”
After the allegations became public, Swalwell’s campaign started hemorrhaging support.
Swalwell quickly lost more than 20 endorsements from his Democrat colleagues.
Important political groups also pulled their endorsements. The California Federation of Labor Unions, with its 1,300 unions and 2.3 million members, was among the groups to ditch Swalwell.
As of the most recent poll taken by Evitarus, Swalwell was the leading Democrat candidate. The Democrats who trailed Swalwell, Katie Porter and Tom Steyer, will now look to capture former Swalwell supporters.
Some lawmakers have also called for Swalwell’s removal from Congress, including Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, D-N.M., who posted on X that she would support a resolution to expel Swalwell from Congress.
