Eric Swalwell announces his candidacy for governor of California
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) announced his candidacy for governor of California on Thursday.
Swalwell, who has been a congressman for more than a decade, broke the news in an interview on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”
“I’m running for governor because prices are too high and people are scared. California’s next governor has two jobs. One, keep the worst president in history out of our homes, our streets, and our lives,” Swalwell wrote in a post on his website. “The governor’s second job is to create a new California. It’s great that we can say we are the fourth largest economy in the world. But what does that mean if you work hard and have no interest in it? Nothing.”
AP Photo/Jeff Chiu
Swalwell, who served on the Jan. 6 committee and worked on Donald Trump’s first impeachment inquiry in 2019, recently joined a list of the president’s political enemies who have been targeted by the Justice Department.
Swalwell is entering an already crowded race in 2026 to succeed term-limited Gov. Gavin Newsom (D). He made the announcement just one day after billionaire and Democratic environmentalist Tom Steyer announced his candidacy for governor. Both former Vice President Kamala Harris and Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) were among the names initially floated to enter the race before ultimately declining.