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Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., announced he would resign his congressional seat on Monday on the heels of multiple bombshell reports last Friday that forced him to drop out of a bid to become the next governor of California.
“I am deeply sorry to my family, staff, and constituents for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past,” Swalwell said in a statement. “I will fight the serious, false allegations made against me. However, I must take responsibility and ownership for the mistakes I did make.”
“I am aware of efforts to bring an immediate expulsion vote against me and other members. Expelling anyone in Congress without due process, within days of an allegation being made, is wrong,” he continued. “But it’s also wrong for my constituents to have me distracted from my duties. Therefore, I plan to resign my seat in Congress.
At least four women have accused Swalwell of sexual misconduct, including a former aide who alleged he raped her when she was intoxicated and could not consent, according to reporting from CNN and The San Francisco Chronicle.
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Swalwell’s abrupt announcement of his resignation plans could thwart a bipartisan attempt to expel him that was slated to occur as early as this week.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a conservative House Republican, planned to introduce a resolution to forcibly remove Swalwell from his seat on Tuesday. She called on House GOP leadership to hold a vote on the measure on Wednesday.
Luna urged lawmakers in both parties to put aside “ideological differences” and support her resolution and a separate effort led by Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-N.M., targeting embattled Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, for expulsion.
“It is our responsibility, according to the Constitution and House rules, to hold one another accountable, especially when it brings dishonor upon the institution,” Luna wrote to her House colleagues Tuesday in a letter that was reviewed by Fox News Digital. “We as Members of Congress need to stand together in publicly condemning this behavior and restore the trust we have lost with the American people.”
The Florida Republican warned over the weekend that she would draft the expulsion measure if Swalwell did not resign by the time House lawmakers returned to Washington on Tuesday.
Luna’s resolution would have likely garnered significant bipartisan support.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., was among several progressive Democrats who issued support for the expulsion effort.
Other Democratic lawmakers have called on Swalwell to resign, but have stopped short of backing Luna’s expulsion resolution.
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Democratic backlash in the wake of the Chronicle’s harrowing reporting led to a wave of Swalwell’s colleagues and longtime allies rescinding their support for his since-suspended gubernatorial campaign — including former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Swalwell exited the 2026 gubernatorial primary to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., on Sunday. The announcement came despite Swalwell appearing to be a top contender in recent polling.
Swalwell first became a member of the House of Representatives in 2013. Before his time in Congress, Swalwell served as a prosecutor in the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office before becoming a city councilmember in Dublin, California, in 2010.
As a member of the House, Swalwell helped spearhead impeachment efforts against President Donald Trump in 2019 and, before that, led inquiries on whether Russian interference had meaningfully impacted the 2016 presidential election.
It’s unclear if Swalwell’s resignation marks an end to his political career.
In its Friday report, the San Francisco Chronicle detailed graphic accounts from a woman accusing Swalwell of pursuing intoxicated women, pressuring employees into intimate situations and asking for explicit images from female contacts.
Rumblings of misconduct from Swalwell first emerged earlier this month when Cheyenne Hunt, a former Capitol Hill staffer and a political media personality, began circulating testimony from women who said they had been sexually assaulted by the congressman.
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“The Democratic candidate currently leading in the California governor’s race has a known history of being predatory towards women,” Hunt claimed in a post to social media.
Despite initially remaining silent on the allegations, Swalwell’s office broke its silence on the matter in comments made to the New York Post earlier this week.
“This false, outrageous rumor is being spread 27 days before an election begins by flailing opponents who have sadly teamed up with MAGA conspiracy theorists because they know Eric Swalwell is the frontrunner in this race,” Micah Beasley, a spokesperson for Swalwell, said.
Swalwell’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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