New accuser alleges Eric Swalwell drugged and raped her

BEVERLY HILLS - A Southern California woman said Tuesday that Rep. Eric Swalwell drugged and raped her in 2018, joining several other women who have come forward in recent days with allegations of sexual misconduct by the East Bay Democrat.

The woman, Lonna Drewes, made the announcement at a Tuesday news conference in Beverly Hills alongside her attorneys, Lisa Bloom and Arick Fudali, and said that she did not come forward at the time for fear that it would harm her political aspirations.

Bloom said she planned to immediately file a police report with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office, which has jurisdiction over criminal incidents in West Hollywood, where the assault allegedly took place.

"Losing one's job is not a sufficient consequence for these types of allegations," Bloom said. "We will not rest until we get justice for Lonna."

Swalwell and his lawyer did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Drewes' allegations.

In 2018, Drewes said she met Swalwell on three occasions. He invited her to two public events, saying that he would help introduce her to people who could help with her fashion software company and interest in local politics. He was married at the time and his wife was pregnant, and Drewes said she was in a committed relationship. She saw herself and Swalwell as friends and said she was interested in the professional and business connections he offered, not a sexual or romantic relationship with the congressman.

She believes Swalwell spiked her drink on the third occasion because she had only one glass of wine, but quickly became extremely intoxicated. Saying he needed to pick up paperwork before an event, Swalwell allegedly brought her to his hotel room, where Drewes said she was incapacitated as he assaulted her.

"He raped me and he choked me," she said. "While he was choking me, I lost consciousness and I thought I died. I did not consent to any sexual activity."

She is the fifth woman to come forward with accusations against Swalwell. The first told the Chronicle in an account published Friday that Swalwell assaulted her twice - once in 2019 when she was a 21-year-old staffer in his congressional office and again in 2024 after a gala in New York City. Hours after the Chronicle story published, CNN reported allegations from three more women, two who said Swalwell sent them unsolicited photos of his penis, and another who said he sexually assaulted her in 2025.

The announcement in Beverly Hills comes a day after Swalwell, a Democrat who represented a suburban swath of Alameda County, said he would resign from Congress. His resignation took effect late Tuesday morning, according to a letter read on the House floor. On Sunday, he suspended his campaign for governor, a race in which he had been a front-runner. He has generally denied the allegations, even as he has apologized for making "mistakes in judgment."

"I will fight the serious, false allegations against me," he wrote in a statement announcing his resignation. "However, I must take ownership for the mistakes I did make."

The three alleged assaults detailed by the Chronicle and CNN follow the same pattern, which was echoed Tuesday by Drewes: The women said they agreed to get drinks with Swalwell but then became so intoxicated they do not remember or have only partial memories of what followed. In each case, they woke up later in Swalwell's hotel room.

While Drewes said Tuesday she did not undergo a rape kit at the time, she disclosed the alleged assault to people close with her, recorded the events in her diary and spoke with a therapist at a sexual assault center. A photograph shared Tuesday at the press conference shows Drewes, who was working as a model at the time, and Swalwell posing together at a Beverly Hills restaurant opening in 2018. Drewes and her attorneys said they plan to give all available evidence to law enforcement and fully cooperate with an investigation.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office and District Attorney's Office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The alleged rape had a profound impact on her mental health, Drewes said.

"I did not want to live anymore," she said.

Bloom said she had received messages from several other women regarding Swalwell, and encouraged more survivors to come forward. She said the congressman's statements in response to allegations against him so far were defensive, minimizing and "a slap in the face to the victims."

"I think the American public is sick and tired of these stories," Bloom said. "And I'm sick and tired of women being victimized by men in power. Enough is enough."

Bloom, the daughter of civil rights attorney Gloria Allred, has represented survivors of sexual abuse in several high-profile cases, including accusations made against President Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein and Bill Cosby. In 2017, Bloom drew controversy by working for Harvey Weinstein, although she later apologized and called it a "colossal mistake."

Speaking out against sexual abusers often creates a "domino effect," in which more people feel emboldened to come forward, said Fudali, partner and managing attorney at the Bloom Firm. He said there was no political motivation in the allegations.

"This is about much more than politics, and belittling such serious allegations is offensive to Lonna and the victims everywhere," he said. "This is not about the pursuit of governor, this is about the pursuit of justice."

Drewes said her delay in taking action was driven by fear of Swalwell's political power, his background as an attorney and his family ties to law enforcement.

"I have never doubted what happened," Drewes said. "I stand with the other women who have come forward."

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This story was originally published April 14, 2026 at 10:33 AM.