SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Rep. Eric Swalwell came under new legal and political pressure this weekend after a former staffer accused him of sexual assault, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office confirmed it is investigating the New York allegation, and top Democrats urged him to quit California’s governor’s race with the June 2 primary weeks away. Swalwell denied the accusations, but the allegations hit an already fractured top-two contest at the worst possible moment for Democrats, who were already worried that a split field could hand both November spots to Republicans, April 12, 2026.
The first detailed public account came in a San Francisco Chronicle report from a former employee in Swalwell’s district office, who said two encounters in 2019 and 2024 happened when she was too intoxicated to consent. The paper said it reviewed corroborating material tied to the 2024 allegation and spoke with people the woman had told about it.
That reporting quickly moved from campaign crisis to law-enforcement matter. Reuters reported that the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office is investigating the New York allegation and urged anyone with knowledge of the case to contact its Special Victims Division.
Swalwell has rejected the allegations outright. In comments carried by Reuters’ earlier report on his response, he called the accusations “absolutely false” and said he would fight them, while also suggesting the timing was political as the primary draws near.
The backlash inside his own party was immediate. The Associated Press reported that Sen. Adam Schiff, labor organizations and other former allies began withdrawing support, while the AP also noted it had not independently verified the accuser’s account or identity. The same report said the alleged 2024 incident occurred in New York.
House Democratic leadership then formalized the pressure. In an official statement from Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar, the leaders called the accusations “incredibly disturbing,” demanded a swift investigation and urged Swalwell to immediately end his bid for governor.
Eric Swalwell sexual assault claims reshape the race overnight
The speed of the reversal is striking because Swalwell had only recently looked like one of the Democrats most capable of surviving the state’s open primary. When he entered the race in November, CalMatters reported on his launch as an affordability-and-anti-Trump pitch built around rising prices, immigration fights and his national profile as a cable-news regular and House Democrat.
Even in late March, Reuters described the governor’s contest as a crowded Democratic field in which Swalwell, Tom Steyer and Katie Porter all had plausible paths through California’s top-two system, even as party officials worried that too many Democrats on the ballot could open the door to a Republican sweep.
That context helps explain why the allegations landed with unusual force. Swalwell was not a fringe candidate absorbing a bad news cycle; he was a visible contender in a high-stakes succession race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom, and his collapse would immediately reshuffle money, endorsements and the strategic calculus for every major Democrat left in the field.
For now, the race sits in an uncomfortable middle ground: an accusation Swalwell denies, an active Manhattan investigation, and a party establishment that is rapidly creating distance before prosecutors say anything more. In California’s top-two format, that combination may prove politically decisive long before voters learn whether the legal case goes any further.
