East Bay Congressman Eric Swalwell, D-Dublin, announced Monday that his campaign in the 2020 presidential primary has come to an end. He will now turn his focus toward re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he sits on the influential House Intelligence and Judiciary committees.
“After the first Democratic presidential debate, our polling and fundraising numbers weren’t what we had hoped for, and I no longer see a path forward to the nomination,” Swalwell said in a statement. “My presidential campaign ends today.” Despite the numbers, Swalwell said he’s proud of the impact his presence in the race has had on the issues, specifically citing support among other candidates for a plan to buy back assault weapons nationwide.
“I’ll never forget the people I met and lessons I learned while traveling around our great nation – especially in the communities most affected by gun violence,” Swalwell said.
“Too many communities feel this pain,” he added. “But in every community’s grief, I see people who love one another and have inside themselves the grit to get things done to end gun violence once and for all.”
As of June 21, Swalwell’s campaign had raised just $254,430, and spent more than $140,000 on social media advertising through Facebook and Twitter alone, according to www.opensecrets.org. Swalwell has represented California’s 15th District, which includes much of Alameda County and part of Contra Costa County, since 2012. California’s congressional primary is slated for March 3, 2020.
Hayward City Councilmember Aisha Wahab and Republican immigrant Peter Yuan Liu have both declared their intention to challenge Swalwell for his House seat.