Rep. Eric Swalwell dropped out of the California gubernatorial race Sunday, following sexual assault allegations made by a former staffer.

The allegations come less than two months before the June 2 primary.

In a bombshell piece from The San Francisco Chronicle published Friday (opens in new tab), (opens in new tab) a former Swalwell staffer alleged that the congressman made repeated sexual advances while she worked for him and twice assaulted her while she was too intoxicated to consent.

The woman told the paper that Swalwell began pursuing her soon after she was hired at age 21 to work in his district office in the East Bay. Swalwell, who is married and has three children, sent photos of his genitals to the younger staffer on Snapchat and asked her for sexual favors, the report says.

In September 2019, the woman said, she woke up naked in Swalwell’s hotel room and felt the physical signs of intercourse. She remembered only bits and pieces of the night before, she said. The woman later left Swalwell’s office but continued to work in politics.

In April 2024, she attended an awards ceremony in New York where Swalwell was being honored. She got drinks with him that night and ended up intoxicated in his hotel room, where he allegedly forced himself on her and continued having sex with her after she said no.

The Chronicle corroborated her claims with medical records and by speaking with friends and a former boyfriend in whom she had confided.

The allegations follow weeks of rumors on social media about alleged sexual harassment and assault by Swalwell. On Tuesday, gubernatorial candidate and former House Rep. Katie Porter, also a Democrat, said on CNN that she had heard “troubling (opens in new tab)” allegations from women staffers against the congressman.

Swalwell said he never behaved inappropriately with female staffers and called the rumors of abuse “false (opens in new tab).” Swalwell’s attorneys sent a cease-and-desist letter to the woman in the Chronicle’s report, denying the allegations and describing them as politically motivated. The letter raised the possibility of a defamation claim.

“The timing and pattern of your conduct speak for themselves,” attorney Elias Debaie wrote.

The woman accusing Swalwell said she has a responsibility to prevent others from becoming victims of sexual misconduct.

“I have no skin in the game of who becomes governor of California, but I feel people have a right to know whether the person who leads a state that is a safe haven for so many women actually treats women with dignity and will protect their rights,” she told the Chronicle.

Fallout from the allegations was swift.

Ahead of Swalwell’s announcement, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi suggested he end his gubernatorial campaign. Pelosi said the accuser must be “respected and heard” and called for the allegations to be investigated.

“As I discussed with Congressman Swalwell, it is clear that is best done outside of a gubernatorial campaign,” she said in a statement.

His opponents also called on him to quit the race (opens in new tab). Former Assemblymember and candidate Ian Calderon went further, telling Swalwell to resign from Congress.

An independent expenditure campaign funding Swalwell’s campaign, Californians for a Fighter in Support of Eric Swalwell, suspended its activity in light of the “serious allegations,” a spokesperson said.

On Swalwell’s campaign site, the endorsements section was removed (opens in new tab) and returned a “404” error as of Friday afternoon.

Polling compiled by The New York Times (opens in new tab) shows a wide-open 2026 California governor’s race, with no clear front-runner and several candidates clustered closely together. Republican Steve Hilton and Porter are generally polling in the high teens, often within a few points of each other, while a large share of voters remain undecided.

Under California’s top-two primary system, the tight margins mean the race is highly fluid.