House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi demanded Friday that Rep. Eric Swalwell (CA-14) immediately end his campaign for California governor amid explosive sexual assault allegations from a former staffer.
And yet, neither leader — nor any prominent national Democrats in Congress at the present time — called for Swalwell to resign his seat in Congress, where the alleged misconduct against a subordinate is said to have occurred.
Multiple women, including the aforementioned congressional staffer and at least three others, have come forward with sexual misconduct and assault allegations against Swalwell. The claims include unwanted sexual advances, unsolicited explicit messages (including nude photos), and two alleged assaults on the former staffer while she was intoxicated. One of those claimed assaults reportedly took place in 2019 while she worked for him, and another in 2024. CNN and the San Francisco Chronicle have investigated and provided corroborating details, such as texts and medical records.
Swalwell has strongly denied all the accusations, calling them false and politically timed to damage his campaign. And damaged, it is. Especially when you consider that Democrats are almost always willing to fall in line to defend one of their own, but don't seem to be rallying on his behalf here.
But there's something missing from these strongly worded statements. See if you can spot the trend.
"Following the incredibly disturbing sexual assault accusations against Congressman Eric Swalwell, we call for a swift investigation into these incidents and for the Congressman to immediately end his campaign to be California’s next Governor," Jeffries said in a statement. "This is unacceptable of anyone — certainly not an elected official — and must be taken seriously."
Statement on the Serious Accusations against Rep. Eric Swalwell. pic.twitter.com/9lkYqiCIGr
— Hakeem Jeffries (@RepJeffries) April 11, 2026
READ MORE: Breaking—More Sexual Assault Accusers Against Rep. Swalwell Come Forward
Pelosi also chimed in with perhaps the most damning (based on her stature in the party) statement regarding Swalwell's campaign.
“The young woman who has made serious allegations against Congressman Swalwell must be respected and heard," she said in her own statement.
“This extremely sensitive matter must be appropriately investigated with full transparency and accountability,” Pelosi added. “As I discussed with Congressman Swalwell, it is clear that is best done outside of a gubernatorial campaign."
PELOSI weighs in, says she has advised Swalwell to drop his bid for governor
— Melanie Zanona (@MZanona) April 10, 2026
“The young woman who has made serious allegations against Congressman Swalwell must be respected and heard.
This extremely sensitive matter must be appropriately investigated with full transparency and… https://t.co/rOCHBA71UD
Catch that? Swalwell's alleged behavior is "unacceptable" for an elected official, Temu Obama rails. The allegations against a sitting member of Congress must be taken seriously, Pelosi claims.
And yet, not a one of them demanded that the congressman resign.
Their failure to call on him to step down from the very institution where the alleged misconduct occurred reveals a transparent political calculation — protect the House seat at all costs, even if it means sacrificing California to avoid further embarrassment.
Notice they’re not calling on him to resign from Congress.
— Ari Fleischer (@AriFleischer) April 11, 2026
What an unprincipled, meaningless statement.
If they thought Swalwell did wrong, they should call on him to resign. https://t.co/zvJnvK4a23
At the time of publishing this column, not one prominent Democrat at the national level has called on Swalwell to step down. Several party candidates for California governor — including Tony Thurmond and Betty Yee have gone further, calling for him to both drop out of the race and resign from Congress. But then, they have personal reasons to pounce on what's left of Swalwell's political career.
Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (FL-13) tells Politico that she will consider a measure to censure the disgraced congressman, though anything short of expulsion would do little to hold him accountable.
But it's up to his Democrat colleagues to turn the screws and force him out of Congress. If Swalwell’s alleged behavior is serious enough that party leaders believe he cannot be trusted to run for governor of California, then it is unquestionably serious enough that he must immediately resign from the United States Congress. There's no ambiguity here.
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