Rep. Eric Swalwell managed to step right into the fire on day one of his California gubernatorial bid after appearing to film part of his launch video inside his Washington, D.C., home, the same property now tied to a mortgage and tax fraud probe. The move has political observers asking whether the Democrat’s eligibility to run the nation’s most populous state could take a hit.
Swalwell, 45, rolled out his campaign last week with a one-minute spot vowing to “keep the worst president in our history out of our homes, out of our streets and out of our lives” while promising relief from soaring living costs. But viewers on X quickly noticed the backdrop looked a lot like the congressman’s $1.2 million Victorian-style bungalow in D.C., not the Golden State he claims he’s ready to “build” anew.
California’s Constitution technically requires candidates for governor and lieutenant governor to have lived in the state for five years. But Secretary of State Shirley Weber’s office has declared the provision unenforceable, arguing it violates the U.S. Constitution. Public records reviewed by The New York Post show Swalwell does not currently own property in California and has not been tied to any in-state address for at least a decade, around the time he began preparing his first congressional run.
Swalwell enters a crowded 2026 field to replace term-limited Gov. Gavin Newsom. Early RealClearPolitics polling shows former Rep. Katie Porter leading Democrats with 15.7 percent support. Other Democrats — former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and billionaire Tom Steyer — remain stuck below double digits. On the GOP side, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and commentator Steve Hilton are polling at 13 percent and 11.3 percent, respectively.
Both Steyer and Swalwell washed out early in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary, failing to reach Super Tuesday.
The latest headache for Swalwell stems from a Nov. 12 referral from Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte to the Department of Justice, alleging the congressman falsely claimed his D.C. property as his primary residence. A source familiar with the referral previously told The Post the designation helped Swalwell secure millions in loans and refinancing, potentially exposing him to charges of mortgage fraud, insurance fraud and state or local tax fraud. FHFA’s inspector general is also digging into the alleged scheme.
The six-bedroom, five-and-a-half-bathroom home sits in the Eckington neighborhood, about a mile from the Capitol. Records show its original 1920s interior was stripped in favor of a modern redesign before Swalwell bought it in 2020.
The congressman has long been one of former President Donald Trump’s most vocal antagonists. He sued Trump two months after the Jan. 6 riot and previously served as an impeachment manager during the House Democrat-led effort to remove him from office. In a statement after news of the criminal referral broke, Swalwell did not deny wrongdoing but vowed to “not stop speaking out against the president and speaking up for Californians.”
California law prohibits gubernatorial candidates from having felony convictions tied to bribery, embezzlement of public funds, extortion, theft of public money, perjury or conspiracy to commit those crimes. Mortgage fraud is not on that list.
Swalwell is the fourth high-profile Democrat targeted by mortgage fraud investigations launched by Pulte. Sen. Adam Schiff, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook each faced scrutiny for allegedly misrepresenting second homes or rental properties as primary residences to score better loan terms.
A federal grand jury indicted James on Oct. 9 in Alexandria, Va., accusing her of bank fraud and false statements tied to a $109,600 loan that prosecutors say allowed her to pocket about $19,000. Another federal grand jury in Maryland has weighed charges against Schiff since August but has not issued an indictment.
Cook was fired from the Federal Reserve by Trump after news of her own investigation emerged. She is now appealing a wrongful termination case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
