More Women Accuse Eric Swalwell of Sexual Misconduct

 

AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein

Per a Friday CNN exclusive, four women have accused Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) of sexual misconduct — including a former staffer alleging the California gubernatorial candidate raped her.

This news comes just hours after a report from the San Francisco Chronicle, in which a former staffer accused Swalwell of rape. It isn’t yet clear whether CNN and The Chronicle share a source, or if these accusations come from two different women.

According to CNN, the former staffer — who began as a 20-year-old intern on Swalwell’s 2019 presidential campaign and later worked in his district and Washington offices — alleged that Swalwell raped her in 2024, several years after she left his employment, and said it was the second time he had nonconsensual sexual contact with her while she was intoxicated.

The other allegation she details occurred in 2019, while she was still working for him. She said that she woke up naked in Swalwell’s hotel room after a night of heavy drinking and had “no memory of what happened.”

Of the 2024 incident, the woman said, “I was pushing him off of me, saying no… He didn’t stop.” She went on to allege that Swalwell left her bruised and “bleeding.”

CNN reported that it found corroboration for key parts of her account, including contemporaneous text messages, interviews with relatives and a friend, and medical records related to STD and pregnancy testing after the alleged 2024 assault.

But CNN said the former staffer was not the only woman to come forward. Three other women also alleged various forms of sexual misconduct, including unsolicited explicit messages or nude photos.

One woman who connected with Swalwell online over Democratic politics told CNN that he kissed her and touched her leg without her consent during a night out, and that she later ended up “extremely drunk” in his hotel room with little memory of what happened.

Another woman, social media creator Ally Sammarco, said Swalwell sent unsolicited nude messages after the two connected on Twitter to discuss politics.

A fourth woman who works in marketing alleged that Swalwell sent her “several videos of his penis,” which she said she “did not ask for.”

As noted in the report, CNN “reviewed screenshots of dozens of messages Swalwell exchanged with the women, many of which are flirtatious in nature.” None were sexually explicit, with the sources explaining that the congressman sent messages of that nature over Snapchat, where chat content deletes within a day.

Swalwell denied the allegations in a statement to CNN.

“These allegations are false and come on the eve of an election against the front-runner for governor,” it read. His attorney also denied that he had “ever had nonconsensual sex with any woman or ever had sexual relations with any member of his staff.”

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