California gubernatorial candidate, Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-CA appears at a town hall meeting in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell suspended his campaign for California governor on Sunday following sexual assault allegations that he has denied.

“I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made — but that’s my fight, not a campaign’s,” Swalwell said in a social media post.

His announcement came as Democrats quickly abandoned him after the allegations were published Friday in the San Francisco Chronicle and later CNN that he had sexually assaulted a woman twice, including when she worked for him.

A growing number of Democrats urged the congressman both to quit the race and resign his seat in Congress. His statement made no mention of resigning from Congress. The allegations came as Swalwell became a leading contender in the race for California governor to replace outgoing Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Though Swalwell has denied the allegations, he has seemingly referenced infidelity in multiple statements.

“To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past,” he wrote. That followed a video post on Friday where he apologized to his wife.

Over the weekend, with Swalwell’s gubernatorial campaign already teetering, Democrats in Congress began to call for his resignation from the House. Some even said they would support the rare step of expelling him should he refuse to step aside.

Fellow California Reps. Jared Huffman, Ro Khanna and Sam Liccardo said Swalwell should resign, as did Reps. Teresa Leger Fernández of New Mexico and Pramila Jayapal of Washington state.

“This is not a partisan issue,” Jayapal said Sunday. “This cuts across party lines. And it is depravity of the way that women have been treated.”

Swalwell’s gubernatorial campaign did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment

It all added to the mounting political pressure on Swalwell, who has already seen his most prominent supporters, including Sen. Adam Schiff and powerful labor unions, pull their endorsements and call for his exit from the race. Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Calif., who helped run Swalwell’s campaign, said he was immediately ending his

role.

With the House returning to session Tuesday, the question of whether to expel Swalwell could come to a head quickly. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., said Saturday that she would be filing a motion to start the process.

Expulsion votes in the House are rare and require a two-thirds majority, but there is recent precedent for taking the step. Republican George Santos of New York in 2023 became just the sixth member in House history to be ousted by colleagues for his conduct.