Exclusive: Four women describe sexual misconduct by Rep. Eric Swalwell, including a former staffer who says he raped her

A former staffer of Rep. Eric Swalwell, a leading Democratic candidate for California governor, says that the congressman raped her when she was heavily intoxicated and left her bruised and bleeding, an allegation Swalwell strongly denies.

“I was pushing him off of me, saying no,” the woman told CNN of the incident, which she said happened in 2024 after she had stopped working in Swalwell’s office. “He didn’t stop.”

She said it was the second time Swalwell had nonconsensual sexual contact with her while she was drunk. In 2019, when she was still working for him, she said she woke up naked with him in a hotel room after a night of heavy drinking. She said she had no memory of what happened but could feel physically that they’d had sexual contact.

Three other women who spoke with CNN also alleged various kinds of sexual misconduct by the Democratic congressman – including Swalwell sending them unsolicited explicit messages or nude photos.

One woman who connected online with Swalwell over her interest in Democratic politics says she ended up extremely drunk inside his hotel room after a night out with the congressman, with little memory of what occurred. Earlier in the night at a bar, he kissed her and touched her leg without her consent, she said.

Another woman, who described receiving unsolicited nude messages from Swalwell, was social media creator Ally Sammarco. She said she initially reached out to the congressman on Twitter to discuss politics. “I truly never thought he would respond – I had like 1,000 followers at the time,” she said. “And he actually responded.”

Swalwell denied the women’s allegations.

“These allegations are false and come on the eve of an election against the front-runner for governor,” Swalwell said in a statement to CNN. “For nearly 20 years, I have served the public – as a prosecutor and a congressman and have always protected women. I will defend myself with the facts and where necessary bring legal action. My focus in the coming days is to be with my wife and children and defend our decades of service against these lies.”

An attorney for Swalwell sent two of the women CNN spoke with cease-and-desist letters on Thursday, a day after CNN first reached out to his campaign to request comment, according to copies of the letters they provided CNN. The letters called the women’s accounts “false,” ordered them to retract their statements and warned of potential legal action if they continue speaking out.

The letters said the women’s claims were “undermined” by their “voluntary and cooperative relationship with Mr. Swalwell over the course of many years” following the alleged incidents, including the former staffer asking him for job references.

His attorney also sent CNN a letter denying that Swalwell has ever had nonconsensual sex with any woman or ever had sexual relations with any member of his staff.

One member of Swalwell’s staff said they quit immediately after receiving CNN’s detailed list of questions about the allegations.

CNN found corroboration for key elements of each of the women’s claims, including the former staffer who said she was sexually assaulted. Two family members and a friend said in interviews with CNN that she told them about the alleged 2024 assault in the following days, and CNN also reviewed text messages she sent two friends describing her allegations at the same time. “I was sexually assaulted on Thursday,” she wrote to one of her friends, adding: “By Eric.”

The woman also shared medical records related to her receiving STD and pregnancy testing after the alleged assault.

For the woman who connected online with Swalwell over Democratic politics, a family member and two friends confirmed she told them last year about the incident where she ended up intoxicated in his hotel room. CNN also reviewed messages between her and Swalwell, including a photo he sent her that matches footage of him during a CNN interview in her city on the night they met in person.

The women described a similar pattern of events: Swalwell, who is married and has three children, showed close interest in their lives when they were in their twenties and finding their footing professionally, making them feel special and even starstruck. Then, they said, he would send them increasingly sexual messages. Many said they reciprocated and engaged with him in part because of his position of power. In some cases, those inappropriate exchanges escalated to alleged unwanted physical touch or sexual assault, often tied to episodes of heavy drinking.

The women asked not to be named out of fear of retaliation by Swalwell or professional consequences for speaking out against him.

CNN reviewed screenshots of dozens of messages Swalwell exchanged with the women, many of which are flirtatious in nature. None of the messages reviewed by CNN are sexually explicit. The women said Swalwell generally sent more graphic messages via Snapchat, where messages are automatically deleted after short periods of time. Snapchat also warns senders if screenshots are captured.

The allegations come as Swalwell – a congressman from the San Francisco Bay Area, former presidential candidate, and fixture on cable news – has ascended in the polls in California’s competitive governor’s race.

Rumors about misbehavior by Swalwell have circulated on social media in recent weeks, broadcast by a group of progressive social media influencers. Most of the women who spoke to CNN initially reached out to one of these influencers, and said that before the social media attention, they had assumed they were alone in their experiences with Swalwell.

Three key influencers told CNN that they were not being paid by other campaigns and had not coordinated directly with them in publicizing claims about Swalwell.

“This has always been about getting justice for these women and exposing the truth,” said Cheyenne Hunt, a lawyer and former congressional candidate who has shared messages highlighting allegations about Swalwell on social media.

CNN also spoke to other women who worked for Swalwell and said that they had never had any inappropriate interactions with him, with some of them describing him as a supportive and caring boss.

But several of the women who made allegations about Swalwell said that the congressman’s actions had long-term implications on their lives, leaving them confused, distraught and scared. They said they decided to come forward after hearing rumors that they were not alone in their experiences with the congressman.

“I always felt like if I came forward, I was going to suffer the consequences because he was so powerful,” the former staffer who accused Swalwell of assaulting her said, adding, “I’ve lived in fear every single day.”

CNN spoke with two friends who said the woman told them about Swalwell sending her images of his penis and sexually explicit messages at the time it was happening. One friend also said they reviewed a Snapchat video that wasn’t sexually explicit that Swalwell sent to her.

The woman said she felt “embarrassed and kind of ashamed” about her exchanges with Swalwell.

“When you’re getting unsolicited dick videos sent to you, it just makes you feel like I’m lesser than a person,” she said. “I just wish I’d never answered him.”