Swalwell’s Surprising Vote Count Amid Controversy
In California, thousands of Democrats cast their votes for Eric Swalwell, despite his campaign for governor effectively coming to a halt due to serious allegations of rape and sexual assault.
As of Tuesday night, with 76% of precincts reporting, Swalwell managed to secure 16,865 votes, which amounted to just 0.4% of the total in the tight race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom, according to the California Secretary of State’s Office.
It’s puzzling why so many voters chose to support him, especially considering he had suspended his campaign and resigned from Congress after multiple accusations of sexual misconduct emerged, mostly from former staffers. These votes, one might say, were essentially wasted choices in California’s primary.
Swalwell, who is a Democrat from the East Bay and was once a vocal opponent of President Trump, put his campaign on hold after shocking reports surfaced from the San Francisco Chronicle and CNN. While he admitted to some problematic connections, he denied any wrongdoing, referring to the incidents as a mere “error in judgment.”
Unfortunately, the allegations came to light too late, leading to his name being removed from the ballot. Voters were left with over 60 other candidates to choose from, yet nearly 17,000 still opted for Swalwell, whether out of ignorance or indifference.
Swalwell did not provide any comments when reached for a response.
After his career took a significant downturn, he took on the role of finance director for a defunct gubernatorial campaign, giving him control over a $4 million fund, a large portion of which went toward legal expenses.
On the Republican side, former Fox News host Steve Hilton was narrowly leading with 1,029,950 votes (26.8%), closely followed by former Biden administration health secretary Xavier Becerra, who received 990,114 votes (25.8%).
Billionaire Tom Steyer rounded out the top three with 756,013 votes (19.7%), while Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco trailed behind with 438,344 votes (11.4%).
Former Congresswoman Katie Porter received 191,040 votes (5.1%), with San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan close behind at 163,135 votes (4.3%).
The final results will continue to be tallied until the election is officially certified on July 10th.
