Fifth woman alleges sexual misconduct by US Representative Eric Swalwell

By Helen Coster

NEW YORK, April 14 (Reuters) – A fifth woman accused U.S. Representative Eric Swalwell of sexual misconduct on Tuesday; The embattled Democratic congressman announced he was resigning from the House of Representatives and said he was “suspending his campaign for governor of California.”

At a press conference held at her attorney’s office in ‌Beverly Hills, California, Lonna Drewes described an alleged 2018 encounter with Swalwell and accused him of drugging her drink and raping her.

Drewes said the MP had previously invited him to two public events. The third time they met, he drank a glass of wine that she thought numbed her. Drewes claimed the woman was already motionless when they stopped at the hotel room and he raped her. At one point, he said, he choked her and she lost consciousness.

“I thought I was dead,” Drewes said.

He said the incident deeply affected his mental health, he self-medicated, lost his will to live, and cried constantly for years afterward.

Drewes said, “My delay in taking action against Eric was motivated not by suspicion but by fear. Fear of his political power.”

A representative for Swalwell, who is married with three children, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Drewes’ attorney, Lisa Bloom, said her firm will file a police report with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s office. The firm will provide evidence, including text messages, diary entries and witness information.

Swalwell, a front-runner for governor of the most populous US state, ended his campaign shortly after The San Francisco Chronicle and CNN reported that a woman who previously worked in Swalwell’s district office had accused him of two non-consensual sexual advances. The woman told CNN that Swalwell raped her during an encounter at a New York City hotel in 2024.

The woman, who the Chronicle and CNN did not name, was quoted as saying she was too drunk to consent in both cases, according to the report. The Manhattan district attorney’s office confirmed Saturday that it is investigating the sexual assault allegations.

CNN also reported that three more women have made sexual harassment allegations against Swalwell, who has been in the US House of Representatives since 2013.

X Pazartesi günü yayınlanan bir açıklamada Swalwell, ailesinden, çalışanlarından ve seçmenlerinden “geçmişimde yaptığım değerlendirmelerdeki hatalar” nedeniyle özür diledi ve kendisine yönelik “ciddi, asılsız iddialarla” mücadele etme sözü verdi.

It’s not yet clear how long it will take for Swalwell’s resignation to take effect, but he said he will work with his staff to ensure his constituents are served in his absence.

Swalwell’s absence from the governor’s race leaves billionaire Tom Steyer and former Rep. Katie Porter as the top remaining Democratic candidates to replace Gavin Newsom, who has completed the maximum two terms.

California has a primary election system in which the top two candidates, regardless of party, advance to the general election.

(Reporting by Helen Coster in New York; Editing by Donna Bryson and Alistair Bell)