Swalwell Suspends Campaign for California Governor

Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell has suspended his campaign for California governor after he was accused of sexual assault, the AP reports. Swalwell continues to deny the allegations. He said in a social media post Sunday he's suspending his campaign but will fight what he called "serious, false allegations that have been made." The San Francisco Chronicle first reported on the woman's allegations, which the AP has not verified. The woman told the Chronicle, which didn't name her, that Swalwell sexually assaulted her twice, including while she worked for him, while she was too intoxicated to consent. Three other women later spoke to CNN and made accusations of sexual misconduct.

Fellow Democrats were abandoning Swalwell's campaign in droves, with a growing number urging the congressman both to quit the race and resign his seat in Congress. Over the weekend, with Swalwell's gubernatorial campaign already teetering, Democrats in Congress began to call for his resignation from the House. Some even said they would support the rare step of expelling him should he refuse to step aside. Fellow California Reps. Jared Huffman, Ro Khanna, and Sam Liccardo said Swalwell should resign, as did Reps. Teresa Leger Fernández of New Mexico and Pramila Jayapal of Washington state. Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker who remains a dominant force in California politics, said the "serious allegations" must be investigated, and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York and his leadership team also called for an investigation and for Swalwell to end his campaign for governor.

"This is not a partisan issue," Jayapal said Sunday. "This cuts across party lines. And it is depravity of the way that women have been treated." It all added to the mounting political pressure on Swalwell, who had already seen his most prominent supporters, including Sen. Adam Schiff and powerful labor unions, pull their endorsements and call for his exit from the race. Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Calif., who helped run Swalwell's campaign, said he was immediately ending his role. With the House returning to session Tuesday, the question of whether to expel Swalwell could come to a head quickly. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., said Saturday that she would be filing a motion to start the process. (The Manhattan DA has launched a probe related to the accusations.)