California Democrat Eric Swalwell announced Monday he will resign from Congress, stepping away after sexual assault and misconduct allegations derailed his campaign for governor and triggered a House ethics investigation.
The congressman acknowledged mounting bipartisan pressure to leave or face removal. "It's also wrong for my constituents to have me distracted from my duties. Therefore, I plan to resign my seat in Congress," Swalwell said in a statement, while maintaining he would "fight the serious false allegation" against him.
The crisis deepened after the San Francisco Chronicle reported that a female former staffer accused Swalwell of sexually assaulting her twice. CNN followed with a similar account and allegations from three additional women who said he sent unwanted explicit photos or messages. Swalwell had been leading polls in the race to replace Governor Gavin Newsom before suspending his campaign.
The House ethics committee, equally divided between Democrats and Republicans, had just opened its investigation into whether Swalwell "may have engaged in sexual misconduct, including towards an employee working under his supervision."
Multiple lawmakers from both parties called for his removal. Republican congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna said she would introduce a resolution to expel him. Democrat Teresa Leger Fernández pledged to file an expulsion resolution against Tony Gonzales, a Texas Republican who acknowledged an extramarital affair with a staffer who later died by suicide. Both men faced the threat of House expulsion.
"Swalwell, Gonzales, Cherfilus-McCormick, and Mills should resign. If they refuse, they should be expelled," Democratic congresswoman Nydia Velázquez said, referring to other lawmakers under ethics investigation.
Notably, Arizona Democrat Ruben Gallego, described as one of Swalwell's close friends, issued a withering statement supporting the ethics probe. "I believe Eric Swalwell is no longer fit to be a member of Congress. He should be expelled from Congress," Gallego said. "I trusted someone who I believed was a friend, but it is now clear that he is not the person I thought I knew. The women who have come forward have shown courage. They deserve to be believed, to be supported, and to see justice served."
Expelling House members requires a two-thirds vote, an exceptionally high bar. Only six members have been forced from office in U.S. history. The most recent expulsion was New York congressman George Santos in 2023, who was removed after the ethics committee found he misused campaign funds. Santos later pleaded guilty to federal fraud charges before receiving a commutation from Donald Trump.
Swalwell's exit scrambles California's wide-open Democratic primary for governor. Frontrunners now include former congresswoman Katie Porter, billionaire entrepreneur Tom Steyer, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan. On the Republican side, Trump has endorsed former Fox News host Steve Hilton, who faces competition from Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.
Author James Rodriguez: "Swalwell's resignation avoids a messy expulsion fight, but his collapse underscores how quickly political fortunes can vanish when serious allegations surface."
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