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APEric Swalwell on Friday, April 10 apologized to his wife for unspecified “mistakes” in his past while vowing to fight sexual misconduct allegations he described as false as pressure mounted on him to exit the California governor’s race.
Swalwell said he would remain in the contest and he will fight them despite growing calls from fellow Democrats to step aside. Rather than dropping out of the race for California governor as many Democrats had urged, the seven-term Democratic congressman from the Bay Area said he will spend time with family and friends this weekend, and “I look forward to updating you very soon.”
“These allegations of sexual assault are flat false,” the California representative said in a video on social media hours after many of his allies and staffers abandoned his gubernatorial campaign. “They are absolutely false. They did not happen. They have never happened. And I will fight them with everything that I have.”
He added, “I do not suggest to you in any way that I’m perfect or that I’m a saint. I have certainly made mistakes in judgment in my past. But those mistakes are between me and my wife, and to her I apologize deeply for putting her in this position.”
Swalwell called the accusations politically timed, noting that they arrived “on the eve of an election where I have been the front-runner candidate for governor in California."
The statement came after a day of cascading political damage triggered by a San Francisco Chronicle report in which a former Swalwell staffer accused the congressman of sexually assaulting her twice while she was too intoxicated to consent. She said it happened once in 2019 after drinks, when she says she blacked out and awoke naked in his hotel bed, and again in 2024 after a New York charity gala, when she alleges she repeatedly said no.
By Friday evening, the controversy widened beyond that initial account. CNN reported that more women had come forward with accusations of sexual misconduct, including allegations that Swalwell sent unsolicited explicit messages and engaged in unwanted sexual behavior, claims he has also denied.
“For over 20 years, I have served the public as a city councilman, as a member of Congress, and as a prosecutor who went to court on behalf of victims, particularly on behalf of sexual assault victims," Swalwell said in the video.
Swalwell previously denied these allegations and suggested that they are politically timeddue to his campaign’s momentum.
“These allegations are false and come on the eve of an election against the front-runner for governor,” Swalwell said in the statement, as reported by multiple news outlets, including CNN.
As pressure on him grew, calls for him to drop out came from across the party, including from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, as well as California Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla.
Swalwell said he would remain in the contest and he will fight them despite growing calls from fellow Democrats to step aside. Rather than dropping out of the race for California governor as many Democrats had urged, the seven-term Democratic congressman from the Bay Area said he will spend time with family and friends this weekend, and “I look forward to updating you very soon.”
“These allegations of sexual assault are flat false,” the California representative said in a video on social media hours after many of his allies and staffers abandoned his gubernatorial campaign. “They are absolutely false. They did not happen. They have never happened. And I will fight them with everything that I have.”
He added, “I do not suggest to you in any way that I’m perfect or that I’m a saint. I have certainly made mistakes in judgment in my past. But those mistakes are between me and my wife, and to her I apologize deeply for putting her in this position.”
Swalwell called the accusations politically timed, noting that they arrived “on the eve of an election where I have been the front-runner candidate for governor in California."
The statement came after a day of cascading political damage triggered by a San Francisco Chronicle report in which a former Swalwell staffer accused the congressman of sexually assaulting her twice while she was too intoxicated to consent. She said it happened once in 2019 after drinks, when she says she blacked out and awoke naked in his hotel bed, and again in 2024 after a New York charity gala, when she alleges she repeatedly said no.
By Friday evening, the controversy widened beyond that initial account. CNN reported that more women had come forward with accusations of sexual misconduct, including allegations that Swalwell sent unsolicited explicit messages and engaged in unwanted sexual behavior, claims he has also denied.
“For over 20 years, I have served the public as a city councilman, as a member of Congress, and as a prosecutor who went to court on behalf of victims, particularly on behalf of sexual assault victims," Swalwell said in the video.
Swalwell previously denied these allegations and suggested that they are politically timeddue to his campaign’s momentum.
“These allegations are false and come on the eve of an election against the front-runner for governor,” Swalwell said in the statement, as reported by multiple news outlets, including CNN.
As pressure on him grew, calls for him to drop out came from across the party, including from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, as well as California Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla.
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