California Congressman Eric Swalwell is facing intense pressure to drop out of the governor’s race following several allegations of sexual misconduct.
The allegations are serious and range from harassment to rape.
Swalwell, a Democrat and a leading candidate to replace outgoing Gov. Gavin Newsom, has vehemently denied the allegations.
He described them as “false” and politically expedient.
In a statement, he said: “This is the eve of an election against the favorite for governor.”
The first allegation against Swalwell appeared Friday in the San Francisco Chronicle. According to a former employee, he had made inappropriate comments, propositioned her for sex, and sent her sexual text messages shortly after hiring her.
In addition, she had reported that she woke up naked in her hotel room without remembering anything from the previous night in September 2019.
After, cnn published allegations from four more women who claimed they were victims of similar misconduct while working under his leadership.
He quickly lost important allies, including Senator Adam Schiff and Hakeem Jeffries, the leader of House Democrats.
Nancy Pelosi, former speaker of the House of Representatives, demanded an investigation with full transparency, unrelated to a gubernatorial campaign.
