By Svea Herbst-Bayliss
NEW YORK, April 12 (Reuters) – U.S. Representative Eric Swalwell on Sunday said he was suspending his campaign for governor of California, as he faces calls from fellow Democratic lawmakers and dozens of his former staffers to leave Congress following accusations of sexual assault.
“To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past,” Swalwell wrote in a post on X, without elaborating. “I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made – but that’s my fight, not a campaign’s.”
The post did not address the calls for him to leave Congress. Swalwell’s congressional office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Swalwell, who had been a front-runner for the governorship of the U.S.’ most populous state, ended his campaign two days after The San Francisco Chronicle and CNN reported that a woman who previously worked in Swalwell’s district office accused him of two nonconsensual sexual encounters.
CNN also reported that three other women made sexual misconduct allegations against Swalwell, who represents a California district and has been in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2013.
Swalwell has denied the accusations as “absolutely false” and vowed to fight them.
In separate TV interviews on Sunday morning talk shows, Democratic Representatives Pramila Jayapal, Ro Khanna and Eugene Vindman each said Swalwell should quit Congress. An open letter released later on Sunday and signed by more than 50 of Swalwell’s ex-staffers also called on him to resign from Congress and drop out of the California gubernatorial race, calling the allegations serious and credible.
“Remaining in either role while these allegations hang unresolved is an insult to every person who has ever worked for him,” the former staffers wrote in the letter published by several U.S. media outlets.
Under California law, the top two finishers in the June 2 open primary contest will advance to November’s election, regardless of their party affiliation. Other Democratic candidates include former U.S. Representative Katie Porter, billionaire activist Tom Steyer and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan.
DHS, MANHATTAN PROSECUTOR INVESTIGATE
Also on Sunday, the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services confirmed it has looked into allegations that Swalwell illegally employed a Brazilian nanny.
“These allegations are serious. USCIS has referred this matter to the Department of Homeland Security law enforcement for investigation,” a USCIS spokesperson told Reuters in a statement.
Swalwell’s office did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment on the probe.
Politico first reported the USCIS probe.
His fellow lawmakers focused on Swalwell’s future in their chamber.
“What he did is sick and disgusting,” Khanna told “Fox News Sunday” while calling for law enforcement and House ethics investigations of Swalwell.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office on Saturday confirmed it is investigating the sexual assault allegations.
POSSIBLE EXPULSION MOTION LOOMS
As pressure grows on Swalwell to also resign from Congress, some lawmakers have said they would back a motion to expel him from the House of Representatives if he does not leave on his own.
Representative Byron Donalds, a Republican from Florida appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” and Jayapal, a representative from Washington also appearing on “Meet the Press,” each said on Sunday they would vote to expel Swalwell from Congress if such a vote came up.
In a social media post on Saturday, Representative Anna Paulina Luna, a Florida Republican, wrote that she planned to file a motion to expel Swalwell from Congress. She told Fox News she would file the disciplinary motion next week.
Another Democrat, Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, a Florida representative, also faces a potential expulsion vote after a House panel recently concluded she violated ethics rules. A grand jury indicted her in November after she was accused of stealing pandemic relief funds and directing that money to her 2021 congressional campaign.
Cherfilus-McCormick’s office did not immediately return a request for comment. She has previously denied wrongdoing.
While Luna and other Republicans have called for expelling Swalwell and Cherfilus-McCormick, Democrats have been calling for an expulsion of Representative Tony Gonzales, a Texas Republican being investigated by the House over sexual misconduct allegations.
Gonzales’ office did not immediately return a request for comment. Last month, he said he would not seek re-election later this year.
Donalds told “Meet the Press” he wants to see Swalwell and Gonzales leave. “As far as I’m concerned both gentlemen need to go home,” Donalds said.
While calling on Swalwell to resign, Khanna told Fox he also believes “there are other members (of Congress) and Republican members who should resign as well,” such as Gonzales.
(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss with additional reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington D.C., Luc Cohen in New York and Renee Hickman in Chicago; Editing by Aurora Ellis, Sergio Non and Chris Reese)
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