Eric Swalwell Suspends CA Gubernatorial Campaign

Here are the morning’s top stories on Monday, April 13, 2026

• Congressman Eric Swalwell has suspended his campaign for governor. This comes just days after a San Francisco Chronicle report where a former staffer said Swalwell sexually assaulted her. And CNN later reported on other instances of alleged sexual misconduct from three other women.
• Delegates at the California Republican Party’s spring convention in San Diego failed to endorse either of the two main GOP candidates running for governor. Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco received 49% support. Former Fox News Host Steve Hilton drew 44% of the vote. But neither crossed the 60% threshold needed to secure an endorsement. The prevailing GOP message at the convention was a focus on affordability and cost of living.

Eric Swalwell ends California Governor campaign after sexual assault allegations

East Bay Rep. Eric Swalwell, who had emerged as one of the top candidates in California’s crowded governor’s race, suspended his campaign Sunday evening after a series of women accused him of sexual assault and harassment, including allegations that he raped a former staff member twice.

In the short statement posted on social media, he did not address whether he will remain in Congress. “To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past,” Swalwell said on X. “I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made — but that’s my fight, not a campaign’s.

Swalwell, a married father of three, faced swift calls to resign from his House seat and leave the governor’s race after the allegations were published by the San Francisco Chronicle and CNN on April 10. In addition to the political fallout, he’s now facing a criminal inquiry from the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office in New York and possibly Alameda County — where the 2024 and 2019 alleged assaults each took place.

The reports by the Chronicle and CNN included allegations by an unnamed former staffer who said Swalwell sexually assaulted her when she was too intoxicated to consent in both 2019 and 2024. CNN also reported allegations of misconduct from three other women involved in Democratic politics, including one who said Swalwell kissed her without consent and two others who said that he sent them unsolicited nude photos and explicit text messages.

Swalwell flatly denied the allegations of sexual assault in a video he posted on social media Friday, and vowed to fight them. But he seemed to acknowledge at least some infidelity, adding that any mistakes are between him and his wife, and apologizing for “putting her in this position.”

But within hours of the stories publishing, Swalwell was abandoned by nearly all his supporters. Top House Democrats, including Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, called for his exit, and he lost 21 endorsements from fellow Democratic members of Congress. Over the weekend, senior staffers from both his congressional office and campaign resigned, and major labor groups like the California Teachers Association and SEIU California pulled their support. His campaign website no longer contains links to donate or a page listing his donations.

Republican delegates split on top two GOP gubernatorial candidates

Despite President Donald Trump weighing in, California Republicans refused to unite behind a single candidate for governor this weekend.

The party faithful, many of whom sported ‘Trump 2028’ ball caps and paid more than $1,000 in hotel and flights to gather in sunny San Diego, split their votes relatively evenly between Steve Hilton, a businessman and former Fox News host who received the president’s endorsement, and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco. The final tally was 49% for Bianco and 44% for Hilton, both shy of the necessary 60% threshold to earn the party’s endorsement.

Hilton, a British-American who is leading all candidates in polling, entered the weekend as a relative party outsider. He called blocking Bianco’s endorsement “a major success” and said he remained “very confident” that he would secure one of the top two spots in California’s June 2 primary. “Chad Bianco came into this convention assuming he’d got the whole thing in the bag,” Hilton said. “I think we made great progress this weekend to make it roughly even.”

Bianco, who for months courted delegates and party insiders for the endorsement, was adamant that the final tally didn’t accurately reflect how much party support he has. “This changes nothing about our campaign,” Bianco said after the vote Sunday. Despite failing to garner even a majority of the votes, he also insisted, “I have the supermajority of the support from this room, way more than what that total indicated.”

Overall, the GOP’s main messaging focused on affordability and cost of living.