US Representatives Tony Gonzales (R-Texas, left) and Eric Swalwell (D-California, right) are both set to vacate their seats in Congress. Photo / Ricky Carioti, The Washington Post, Anna Moneymaker, Getty Images
Representatives Eric Swalwell (D-California) and Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) separately announced plans to depart from the US Congress on Tuesday before possible expulsion votes related to allegations of sexual misconduct.
Swalwell, who has vehemently denied an accusation of sexual assault but acknowledged some past “mistakes in judgment”, said he would resign because it was wrong “for my constituents to have me distracted from my duties”.
“I will fight the serious, false allegation made against me,” he said in a statement. “However, I must take responsibility and ownership for the mistakes I did make.”
Shortly afterward, Gonzales released a statement saying he would “file my retirement from office” on Wednesday.
“There is a season for everything and God has a plan for us all,” said Gonzales, who has acknowledged an affair with a former member of his staff, a violation of House rules.
The departures of Swalwell and Gonzales – one Democrat and one Republican – would mean the Republicans’ narrow majority in the House remains unchanged if they leave the chamber at the same time.
Swalwell faces accusations of sexual assault from a former staffer, first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. Several other women also alleged sexual misconduct in interviews with the Washington Post, CNN and other news outlets.
Gonzales is being investigated by the House Ethics Committee for having an affair with a staff member who later set herself on fire and died. He dropped his bid for re-election last month after acknowledging the affair with his former aide, but said he would serve out the rest of his term.
Lawmakers, led by Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández (D-New Mexico) and Anna Paulina Luna (R-Florida), had planned to introduce a resolution to expel Swalwell alongside one to expel Gonzales. The resolution could have triggered expulsion votes as early as Thursday.
Swalwell opted to step down rather than face a vote that could have ended his 13-year House career. Gonzales, meanwhile, did not specify when he will retire, announcing only that when Congress returns on Wednesday, he will “file” his retirement.
Leger Fernandez’s office said the congresswoman still plans on filing a resolution to expel Gonzales if he doesn’t resign immediately. The earliest Leger Fernandez can file the motion is 2pm Eastern Time on Wednesday.
As news of Gonzales’ retirement broke, Luna, who had said she would support Leger Fernandez’s efforts to oust Swalwell and Gonzales, said on X that “we have successfully drained part of the swamp this week with the resignation of two very corrupt members of Congress”.
“Thank you for your attention to this matter,” Luna posted.
Swalwell, who briefly ran in the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, ended his California gubernatorial bid on Sunday after the misconduct allegations. He was among the leading Democratic candidates in the crowded race.
In his statement, Swalwell referenced his colleagues’ efforts to expel him from the House and argued that expelling anyone from Congress “without due process, within days of an allegation being made, is wrong”.
The House Ethics Committee announced the launch of an investigation into the allegations against Swalwell earlier Monday. Committee investigations can take months, if not days, and some House members had signalled that they were willing to expedite the expulsion process before the completion of an Ethics investigation.
A group of House Democrats also asked on Monday that Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York) expedite the House Ethics Committee investigations into Swalwell and Gonzales.
One of those Democrats, Representative Kristen McDonald Rivet (Michigan), said on X that the “allegedly criminal behaviour and abuses of power by these Members of Congress are disgusting and so obviously unacceptable”.
“Being in Congress does not mean you get to play by a different set of rules,” she said. “If anything, we should be held to a higher standard.”
Representative Lauren Boebert (R-Colorado), who was pushing for Swalwell and Gonzales to leave Congress, said on X that “nothing about this story brings [me] joy”.
“No, I’m not happy this happened,” Boebert said of Swalwell’s resignation. “I hate that women were victimised by him. I’m horrified his wife and children are having to go through this.”
Once Swalwell leaves the House, California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) will have 14 days to call a special election to fill the seat under state law. Because he was running for governor, Swalwell did not mount a re-election bid for his House seat.
In Texas, Governor Greg Abbott (R) would also get to call a special election to replace Gonzales. Brandon Herrera, a Republican gun-rights activist who calls himself “the AK Guy” on a YouTube channel, is looking to replace the congressman in the general election in November.
Herrera became the party’s nominee after Gonzales abandoned a runoff in the Republican primary last month. The Democratic nominee in the race is attorney and former schoolteacher Katy Padilla Stout, whom Democrats believe has a chance at flipping the district given some of Herrera’s controversial positions on guns and other issues.
As pushes to expel Swalwell and Gonzales gained momentum over the weekend, some lawmakers also suggested forcing votes to oust Representatives Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Florida) and Cory Mills (R-Florida), who for months have been embroiled in controversy over different alleged ethics violations – which they both deny.
Cherfilus-McCormick is the only member already officially found to have violated House ethics rules. The House Ethics Committee made the determination last month as a result of a years-long investigation into whether the congresswoman used coronavirus pandemic money to boost her congressional campaign.
The Ethics Committee is expected to meet on April 21 to determine whether Cherfilus-McCormick should be expelled, censured or face some other form of discipline.
Mills is also under active investigation by the Ethics Committee. The panel is looking into a wide array of allegations, including accusations of campaign finance violations, financial misconduct and sexual misconduct.
Representative Mark DeSaulnier (California), the top Democrat on the Ethics Committee, said in a statement Monday that the panel retains jurisdiction over the ongoing investigation into Swalwell, given that the California Democrat did not resign effective immediately and still remains a House member.
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