California Democrats are moving swiftly to push Rep. Eric Swalwell out of the governor’s race after a former staffer accused him of sexual assault, with two of the state’s most prominent Democratic voices now publicly signaling that his campaign may be over.
Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, through spokesperson Ian Krager, said Friday that the woman accusing Swalwell “must be respected and heard” and that the allegations demand “full transparency and accountability,” adding that after speaking with Swalwell, “it is clear that is best done outside of a gubernatorial campaign.”
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Rep. Robert Garcia, the ranking member on the House Oversight Committee, called for Swalwell’s immediate exit.
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“There is no place in our country or the Democratic Party for those who abuse women and girls,” the gay fellow California Democrat wrote Friday on X. “I stand with the courageous survivor who shared her story. Congressman Swalwell must leave the Governor’s race immediately.”
The allegations, first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, come from a former staffer who said she worked for Swalwell from 2019 to 2021 after being hired at age 21, and that their relationship became sexual while he was her boss. She alleges that in 2019, after drinks with Swalwell, she blacked out and awoke naked in his hotel bed, believing he had sex with her while she was unable to consent. She also alleges a second assault in 2024 after a charity gala, saying she again became too intoxicated to consent and remembers telling him no.
Swalwell has denied the claims, calling them false and politically motivated.
This article originally appeared on Advocate: Eric Swalwell’s governor bid is collapsing as top Democrats turn on him
