Representatives Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales have resigned from Congress after a slew of sexual misconduct allegations had them headed toward expulsion.
Swalwell, a Democrat, and Gonzales, a Republican narrowly escaped a motion and expulsion vote on the House floor. The effort had bipartisan support.
“I am deeply sorry to my family, staff, and constituents for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past. I will fight the serious, false allegation made against me, however, I must take responsibility and ownership for the mistakes I did make,” Swalwell wrote in his resignation letter. He gave up his seat, effective immediately.
“I am aware of efforts to bring an immediate expulsion vote against me and other members. Expelling anyone in Congress without due process, within days of an allegation being made, is wrong. But it’s also wrong for my constituents to have me distracted from my duties,” he continued in the letter.
Meanwhile, Tony Gonzales, a former representative from Texas, set his resignation for 11:59 p.m. on Monday.
Gonzales stepped down amid a House Ethics Committee probe after he admitted to an affair with a staffer who later went on to self-immolate. There are also allegations that he sent a former campaign staffer inappropriate texts.
Congress would have needed a two-thirds vote to expel the now former representatives and it’s not clear whether they had the votes for the resolution to pass.
House Speaker Mike Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries spoke to the press on Tuesday and both expressed that they believe Swalwell and Gonzales had made the right decision.
“My views have been made known about the terrible allegations that were made and obviously the facts that they both admitted to and I believe it was the appropriate thing,” said Johnson.
Jeffries simply said, “Yes” when asked if the resignations were appropriate.
The plan for expulsion was a joint effort by two congresswomen from both sides of the aisle. Democratic Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández of New Mexico and GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida drafted measures for expulsion for the two former lawmakers, Fernandez for Gonzales and Luna for Swalwell.
They each told the representatives that they had until 2 p.m. to submit their resignation.
“I have received word that Swalwell has begun the internal process of switching his staff over to the Clerk of the House. His resignation will be incoming shortly. Same with Tony,” Luna posted on X Tuesday morning.
Two other lawmakers on the radar for expulsion.
Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, a Democrat of Florida, was recently found guilty by the House Ethics Committee of campaign finance violations. Republican Rep. Cory Mills of Florida is under investigation by the ethics panel due to allegations that include sexual misconduct and campaign finance infractions.
