More than 50 former staffers urge investigation of Eric Swalwell allegations

More than 50 former Eric Swalwell staffers publicly broke with the California Democrat, urging law enforcement to “open a full and thorough investigation” and calling the sexual assault and misconduct allegations against him “serious” and “credible.” In their signed letter, the former aides also demanded that Swalwell resign from the House and abandon his bid for California governor, a rare move that put pressure on him from inside his own political orbit.

The backlash intensified after the San Francisco Chronicle reported that a former staffer said Swalwell had sexual encounters with her while she worked for him and sexually assaulted her twice when she was too drunk to consent. The account described an alleged incident in New York City in April 2024, along with additional earlier incidents. On April 11, 2026, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said it was investigating the allegation, turning a campaign scandal into a potential legal and congressional ethics crisis.

Swalwell denied the allegations in a public video and said, “These allegations are flat false.” But the political damage spread quickly. Multiple staffers resigned from his campaign before the Chronicle story was published, and Rep. Jimmy Gomez stepped down as a surrogate and urged Swalwell to leave the race. Rusty Hicks, chair of the California Democratic Party, stopped short of calling for Swalwell to quit but said Democrats should “honestly assess the viability” of their candidacies.

Institutional allies also moved away from the campaign. The California Medical Association, which had given more than $1 million to a pro-Swalwell committee, said it was convening an emergency board meeting. The California Teachers Association suspended its endorsement. House Democratic leaders Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar called for a swift investigation and for Swalwell to end his campaign, signaling that the concern had reached the party’s top ranks.

Republican pressure added another layer to the crisis. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna said she would file a motion to expel Swalwell from the House, a threat that underscored how far the allegations had traveled beyond the governor’s race. For Swalwell, the collapse of support from former staffers, campaign aides and major Democratic institutions suggested a deeper test of political viability than a single damaging news cycle, with the case now moving into the courts, Congress and the center of California politics.