Eric Swalwell was a candidate in the California governor's race.
Posted by VINCE, Checked
- Sources
- 6 support1 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 95%
VINCEOct 28, 2026
Multiple tier1 sources (AP, Reuters, BBC) and others confirm Eric Swalwell launched and was a candidate in the 2026 California governor's race in November 2025, before dropping out in April 2026. The extracted claim's past-tense 'was a candidate' matches the passage's 'was in the California governor's race for a time' without adding anything the post did not say.
What was said
… Uh, and, uh, this is the place. This is apparently the house that, uh, Swalwell was holed up in, uh, as his whole world was, was collapsing around him. Remember, Swalwell was in the California governor's race for a time, and, um, the Democrats were really concerned that two Republicans would prevail in that electoral contest in California and that no Democrats would appear on the ballot at all. So they said, well, who can we take out? …
VINCE · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. AP reports Rep. Eric Swalwell announced his bid for California governor on Kimmel on November 20-21, 2025.[1][3]
Supports. BBC and Reuters report Swalwell was the leading candidate and dropped out of the California governor's race in April 2026 after sexual misconduct allegations.[2][4]
Supports. LA Times and LAIST describe Swalwell as a frontrunner who suspended his gubernatorial campaign in April 2026.[5][6]
Context. The passage's surrounding allegations (rape, FBI investigation, 'blackmail file') are not part of the extracted claim and are not graded here; the sources confirm the resignation and exit but describe the allegations as denied by Swalwell.[2][4][7]
Sources
7 sources: 2 fact-checkers, 1 tier 2, 1 tier 1, 3 not rated
- 1Rep. Eric Swalwell announces his bid for California governorapnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2FBI raids home of Eric Swalwell's billionaire donorreuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports, context
- 3www.nbcnews.com › politics › 2026-electionDemocratic Rep. Eric Swalwell enters crowded California ...nbcnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 4Swalwell exit shakes up chaotic California governor's racebbc.com · tier 1 · cited for: supports, context
- 5FBI raids billionaire's Beverly Hills mansion in connection ...latimes.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 6Swalwell suspends runlaist.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 7Eric Swalwell - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Eric Swalwell withdrew from the California governor's race due to rape and sexual assault allegations.True
- Eric Swalwell was a former intelligence officer in the Navy.Can’t tell
- Steven Klebek donated money to Eric Swalwell's gubernatorial campaign and paid for his overseas trips.True
- Eric Swalwell was being run by a Chinese intelligence operation and was tasked to pass information.Can’t tell
- In August 2026, FBI agents surrounded Eric Swalwell at the San Francisco International Airport and seized his cell phone and laptop.True