Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell denies sexually assaulting former staffer

Politics Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell denies sexually assaulting former staffer By Caitlin Yilek Caitlin Yilek Politics Reporter Caitlin Yilek is a politics reporter at CBSNews.com, based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked for the Washington Examiner and The Hill, and was a member of the 2022 Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship with the National Press Foundation. Read Full Bio Caitlin Yilek April 10, 2026 / 7:25 PM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google Washington — Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, who is running for California governor, denied allegations that he sexually assaulted a former staffer.  "These allegations are false and come on the eve of an election against the frontrunner for governor," Swalwell said in a statement. "For nearly 20 years, I have served the public — as a prosecutor and a congressman and have always protected women."Swalwell threatened to take legal action against the woman, who detailed the alleged encounters to the San Francisco Chronicle, which published a story Friday. "My focus in the coming days is to be with my wife and children and defend our decades of service against these lies," Swalwell said.  The woman, who was not named, said Swalwell started pursuing her shortly after she was hired to work in his district office in Castro Valley in 2019. She alleged he sent her inappropriate photos of himself via Snapchat, requested nude photos of her and asked her to perform oral sex on him in a parking lot. She also alleged that after going out for drinks with Swalwell in September 2019, she woke up naked in his hotel bed with little recollection of the night.  Five years later, in 2024, when she no longer worked for Swalwell, she said she met him for drinks after a charity gala in New York. She said she became intoxicated and only remembers parts of the night, including allegedly pushing him away and telling him "no" while he forced himself on her. She said she woke up the next morning...