Swalwell sees attacks from left and right as the race for governor heats up in California

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A maverick leader has finally emerged in the crowded race for California governor, at least by one measure: Eric Swalwell is everyone’s favorite target.

In a wide-open contest ahead of the June primary, a wave of negative publicity targeting the Democratic U.S. House member suggests that Swalwell’s main rivals see him gaining momentum in a race overshadowed by international wars, turmoil in Washington and rising gas prices.

Read more: US Representative Eric Swalwell is running for governor of California

To listen to his rivals, he has a non-show job in Congress, may not live in California, and is sympathetic to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which has staged immigration raids across Los Angeles that have led to violent protests. His campaign rejects these allegations.

“Whoever starts their head higher than the rest, the other candidates pick up their hammers and start banging them down,” said Democratic consultant Roger Salazar, who is not involved in the contest.

With high-profile endorsements from Democratic U.S. Senator Adam Schiff and California’s influential Service Employees International Union — along with positive polls — other campaigns have ramped up attacks in an apparent attempt to blunt any Swalwell gains. In a race that has not yet captured public attention, strong support could move votes.

“It’s like a kids’ soccer game, people move with the group,” Salazar added.

Residency questions rock campaign

Swalwell, an Iowa native, was elected in 2012 and represents the House district east of San Francisco. He launched his presidential bid in April 2019, but closed it a few months later after failing to attract voters. He is perhaps best known nationally as the House impeachment manager for President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial during his first term in early 2021.

Billionaire hedge fund manager-turned-libertarian Tom Steyer, who is among a handful of prominent Democrats, ran a digital ad mocking Swalwell for missing votes in Congress, which depicted the congressman diving into a pool as the U.S. House of Representatives called votes, while his campaign separately questioned Swalwell’s California residency status. According to Swalwell’s campaign, Steyer’s post used a video the congressman posted during the 2025 government shutdown.

Steve Hilton, a former Fox News anchor and a prominent Republican, said Swalwell should be disqualified because of questions about his residency.

In a letter to the state’s chief elections official earlier this month, Steyer’s campaign argued that Swalwell lived in California “on paper” and asked the office to investigate whether the congressman is qualified to serve as governor. The state constitution requires five years of residency to run for governor, but the California Secretary of State’s Office said that provision is unenforceable.

The office did not immediately respond to an email inquiring about the status of the request.

The California Post recently sent a reporter to Swalwell’s listed address in the San Francisco Bay Area. The news outlet interviewed neighbors who said they had never seen Swalwell before. Meanwhile, Swalwell’s landlord has filed legal papers with the Secretary of State confirming that the congressman and his wife have rented the property since 2017. “He lives on the property,” the documents said.

Swalwell said he receives hundreds of death threats and keeps his address private to protect his family, and accused Steyer and the news outlet of endangering them. His campaign says his living arrangements are no different than any other House member from California. He maintains dual residency, one in the state and the other in Washington.

Swalwell missed the vote in September after his mother died, but campaign spokesman Micah Beasley added that the congressman “was always present on important or close votes.”

“Tom Steyer spent $100 million lying about me,” Swalwell wrote on social media platform X.

Another prominent Democrat, former Rep. Katie Porter, attacked Swalwell for what she described as his support for immigration enforcement officials.

“Eric Swalwell voted to thank ICE,” Porter wrote in an email to supporters. “ICE should be abolished, not thanked.”

His campaign confirmed that Swalwell was among 75 Democrats who voted last year for a GOP-sponsored resolution condemning the attack on a Colorado demonstration held in support of Israeli hostages, which led to the death of a woman. The resolution expressed “gratitude” to law enforcement authorities, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

He proposed restrictions on ICE activities, including requiring agents to remove masks and display official identification, his campaign added. “If there’s anyone that Rep. Swalwell is going after more than Trump, it’s ICE,” Beasley said.

Candidates try to break away from the group

As mail-in voting begins in early May, candidates are vying for advantage in a race in which a fraction of a percentage point could decide the outcome. This election marks the first time since voters approved the state’s “top two” primary system more than a decade ago that there has been a gubernatorial race without a dominant candidate, drawing a Democratic crowd into the contest.

Indeed, Democrats are openly alarmed that the party’s many candidates will undermine each other and allow two Republicans to advance to the November election. Even in this heavily Democratic state, an all-GOP general election is possible under the unusual top-two primary system, which places all candidates on one ballot and advances the top two vote-getters, regardless of party.

The latest poll by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California showed the field has split into two distinct groups, with close races between Swalwell, Hilton, Porter, Steyer and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican, with the other candidates trailing.

Swalwell faces the same challenge as other Democrats: how to stand out in a field where the candidates largely agree on many issues, including resisting Trump’s agenda and lowering the cost of living in a state with some of the highest housing costs, taxes and utility bills in the country.

Democratic political consultant Elizabeth Ashford said that even with Swalwell winning an endorsement from SEIU, “there is still a bit of a window” for another Democratic candidate to move forward.

“There is momentum behind Swalwell,” she said. “I don’t know that it’s quite reached the tipping point where you say, ‘Okay, this is the front-runner.’”

The uncertainty looming over the race to replace outgoing Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom was underscored by a rare but not unprecedented decision by the powerful California Federation of Labor Unions, which endorsed four Democratic contenders — Swalwell, Steyer, Villaraigosa and Porter. Each has a long history of working with labor.

Federation President Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher said the dynamics of the race continue to fluctuate.

“I think you’re still going to see a lot of this bouncing back and forth before it really stabilizes,” she added.

Austin reported from Sacramento, California.