In late November, Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) announced that he was going to run for governor of California, likely in response to former Rep. Katie Porter’s (D-CA) imploding campaign.
Since he announced, he has barely been seen in D.C.
Swalwell's absence brings to light a very serious problem of taxpayers receiving no representation when someone runs for a higher office while still holding a seat in Congress.
Swalwell made himself out to be a hero and savior when he announced his candidacy in late November.
He stated, "Our state, this great state, needs a fighter and a protector.”
The lawmaker continued, "I've been in these fights as a City Council member up in Dublin, my hometown, as a prosecutor in Oakland, and taking on the most corrupt president ever in the U.S. Congress, but I'm ready to bring this fight home.”
He immediately took over as the frontrunner in the race, pushing Porter all the way down to a distant third.
I have discussed this issue before, as we see it all the time when someone says they are planning to run for a higher office than the one they currently hold.
Swalwell, for example, announced his campaignduring the third week of November, which coincides with his last vote in the House, which was on Nov. 18.
In all, Swalwell has missed 50 of 61 roll calls since Sept. 19.
Now, keep in mind, Swalwell was among the members of Congress who ripped Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) for not holding any formal sessions during the shutdown, yet he has barely attended sessions since Johnson resumed normal sessions.
When you are running for re-election to a current seat, you can still perform your usual duties because you are serving your base. Running for higher office, however, requires securing more donors and reaching out to more people, which is why Swalwell has not been around in the Capitol.
Instead, he has been hobnobbing with the rich and famous, with pictures of Swalwell and celebrities recently blasted all over social media. David Latterman, a political analyst based in San Francisco, noted, “The question is, does he just not care about the job, or has he had it in his mind that he’s going to run for governor for a while and he’s getting his name out there across the state. If I were part of his constituency, I’d be pretty ticked off.”
I should also note that worse than Swalwell is New Jersey Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, who has missed 171 votes in 2025, clearly tied up on the campaign trail. Not far behind her is Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-TX), who is running for governor in Texas. While not in the same ballpark, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) has missed 46 votes while serving in leadership and running a gubernatorial campaign in New York.
I would love to see legislation passed to address this that states the only office you can run for while holding a congressional seat is your own office. If you want to run for president, governor, or move from the House to the Senate, you must first leave office before doing so. Right now, the taxpayers are doing nothing but paying for empty seats when this happens. It is a situation that must be addressed, but it is one that nobody is ever willing to table for discussion.
