Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, who has been a number one critic of the Trump administration, says he’s working for governor of California within the 2026 election.
He made the announcement on his official marketing campaign web site, which went stay Thursday night time forward of a scheduled look on “Jimmy Kimmel Dwell!”
Swalwell bought a standing ovation from the viewers when he then introduced his run on Kimmel’s present.
“Our state, this nice state, wants a fighter and a protector,” Swalwell remarked to Kimmel.
“I have been in these fights as a Metropolis Council member up in Dublin, my hometown, as a prosecutor in Oakland and taking over essentially the most corrupt president ever within the U.S. Congress, however I am able to deliver this struggle residence,” Swalwell stated.
He additionally stated he does not belief that the information regarding convicted intercourse offender Jeffrey Epstein shall be launched of their entirety. President Trump stated Wednesday he signed a invoice requiring the Justice Division to launch information inside 30 days.
Swalwell, 45, joins an already crowded discipline of high-profile candidates. Gov. Gavin Newsom can’t run for reelection as a result of he’s term-limited by California regulation.
The sphere consists of a number of different Democratic hopefuls, together with former Secretary of Well being and Human Providers Xavier Becerra, former Rep. Katie Porter, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and entrepreneur Tom Steyer, amongst others. Republican candidates embody political pundit Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.
Swalwell represents the state’s 14th Congressional District, which encompasses a big swath of the East Bay. He has held workplace within the U.S. Home of Representatives since 2013, and earlier than that, he was a prosecutor for Alameda County. His political profession features a run for president within the 2020 election, throughout which he made gun management considered one of his most important focuses and referred to as for a whole ban on assault rifles.
Final week, the Trump administration referred Swalwell to the Justice Division over alleged tax and mortgage fraud. Swalwell addressed the allegations with Kimmel, calling them “nonsense.”
In a press release following the referral, Swalwell stated, “The one factor I’m stunned about is that it took him this lengthy to come back after me.”
Swalwell and the Trump administration have a historical past stretching again to Mr. Trump’s first time period. Swalwell described himself earlier this month as “essentially the most vocal critic of Donald Trump during the last decade.” He additionally served as one of many impeachment managers throughout Mr. Trump’s second impeachment trial.
As well as, there’s an ongoing lawsuit filed by Swalwell in opposition to Mr. Trump that alleges his actions led to the Jan. 6, 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol.
