U.S. House Politics

House leaders and rank-and-file pressure this week turned looming expulsion proceedings into immediate departures: Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell and Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales both announced on Monday that they would resign amid sexual-misconduct allegations, and were officially gone by Tuesday, after a concerted campaign by colleagues from both parties urging they step down. The bids to force their exits came from across the aisle and from within leadership — including, according to a congressional source, a personal call from former Speaker Nancy Pelosi urging Swalwell to leave — and were driven in part by rapid political collapses (lost endorsements, departing staff and donors in Swalwell's case) that made continued service untenable. Their resignations averted what leaders had feared could be an unprecedented week of multiple expulsion votes: House discussions reportedly had also targeted Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick and Cory Mills, with Speaker Mike Johnson publicly forecasting a "consensus" to expel Cherfilus-McCormick after an Ethics Committee trial tied to her receipt of roughly $5 million in COVID relief funds.