Swalwell to Resign from Congress as Ethics Committee Opens Probe Into Sexual Misconduct Allegations

By Michael Phillips | Riptide News Desk

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) announced Monday that he plans to resign from Congress, hours after the House Ethics Committee launched a formal investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against him — capping a stunning five-day collapse that ended both his congressional career and his campaign for California governor.

“I am aware of efforts to bring an immediate expulsion vote against me and other members,” Swalwell wrote on X. “Expelling anyone in Congress without due process, within days of an allegation being made, is wrong. But it’s also wrong for my constituents to have me distracted from my duties. Therefore, I plan to resign my seat in Congress.”

The allegations surfaced on April 10th, when the San Francisco Chronicle and CNN reported that more than four women accused Swalwell of sexual assault, including rape. A former staffer alleged in the Chronicle report that she had sexual encounters with the congressman while working in his office, and that he sexually assaulted her twice while she was too intoxicated to consent. The Chronicle said it corroborated her account by reviewing text messages she sent to a friend three days after one of the alleged encounters, and also interviewed her boyfriend at the time, who confirmed she told him about the alleged assault. Swalwell has denied the most serious allegations, calling them false.

The fallout was immediate: staffers quit, prominent Democratic supporters withdrew their endorsements, and Swalwell suspended his gubernatorial campaign Sunday night. He had been one of the top-polling Democrats in the California governor’s race, alongside former Rep. Katie Porter and billionaire activist Tom Steyer, in a contest that had already lacked a clear front-runner.

The Ethics Committee’s investigation will examine whether Swalwell “violated the Code of Official Conduct or any law, rule, regulation, or other applicable standard of conduct in the performance of his duties or the discharge of his responsibilities.”

Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), one of Swalwell’s top allies and the chair of his 2020 presidential campaign, said Monday he supported the Ethics Committee probe and that Swalwell was “no longer fit to be a Member of Congress.” “I had no knowledge of the allegations of assault, harassment, and predatory behavior against Eric Swalwell,” Gallego wrote on X. “He is not the person I thought I knew.”

The parallel resignation of Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) was announced the same day, after the House Ethics Committee also launched a probe into him over a romantic relationship with a former staffer who later died by suicide. The dual departures have prompted broader discussion in the House about conduct standards and whether additional expulsion proceedings may follow.

Swalwell’s seat will be filled through a special election, the timing of which remains unclear and will be determined by California’s Democratic governor.

Riptide covers federal accountability, civil rights, and political affairs.