Swalwell and Gonzales Resignations Trigger Bipartisan Reckoning as Second Wave of #MeToo Engulfs Capitol Hill

The rapid departures of former Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) and former Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) from Congress amid sexual misconduct allegations and threats of expulsion have ignited what observers are calling a second wave of the #MeToo movement on Capitol Hill. The bipartisan nature of the exits — one Democrat and one Republican forced out within a compressed timeline — has prompted both parties to confront deep internal tensions over accountability, institutional credibility, and the political calculus of protecting or expelling their own members.

The departures of Swalwell and Gonzales represent a dramatic shift in how Congress polices its own. Historically, the expulsion mechanism has been used with extraordinary rarity — only five members of the House have ever been expelled in the institution’s more than 230-year history, three of them during the Civil War for supporting the Confederacy. In more recent decades, members facing misconduct allegations have typically been allowed to resign quietly or, in many cases, have survived ethics investigations with censure or reprimand rather than removal. The fact that expulsion resolutions advanced far enough to compel resignations from both a Democrat and a Republican in rapid succession signals a fundamentally altered political environment in which neither party’s leadership felt capable of shielding accused members from consequences.

The speed of the process has drawn attention on its own. During the first wave of the #MeToo movement that began in late 2017, it took weeks or months for accused lawmakers to face formal consequences. Former Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) resigned in January 2018 after allegations surfaced in November 2017, and even then the process was marked by intense internal debate among Democrats. Former Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) similarly left office only after sustained public pressure. On the Republican side, former Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-Texas) initially resisted calls to resign despite revelations that taxpayer funds had been used to settle a sexual harassment claim, ultimately departing in April 2018. The Swalwell and Gonzales cases moved on a notably compressed timeline, suggesting that the institutional appetite for prolonged deliberation on such matters has diminished sharply. Advocacy groups that track congressional misconduct have noted that internal party dynamics have shifted: rank-and-file members, many of whom arrived in Congress after 2018 on platforms that emphasized accountability, are now a driving force demanding consequences rather than waiting for leadership to act.

The bipartisan nature of the departures is particularly significant in a period of extreme polarization. In prior misconduct episodes, each party has often accused the other of hypocrisy — demanding accountability from opponents while circling the wagons around their own. The near-simultaneous reckoning involving a Democrat and a Republican complicates that dynamic. For Democrats, the Swalwell departure forces a confrontation with a member who had been a visible national figure, particularly for his role on the House Intelligence Committee and his brief 2020 presidential campaign. For Republicans, the Gonzales exit is notable given that Gonzales represented a sprawling and competitive South Texas border district, TX-23, that the party had invested heavily in retaining. The political cost of losing a seat holder in a swing district underscores how seriously the caucus treated the allegations.

The broader implications extend well beyond the two departed members. Both parties now face special election dynamics that could alter the razor-thin margins in the House. Swalwell’s California district, in the deep-blue Bay Area, is expected to remain in Democratic hands, but the primary could surface factional tensions within the party. Gonzales’s Texas district is a far more competitive battleground, and Republicans will need to defend it without the advantages of incumbency. Beyond electoral math, congressional leaders in both chambers are likely to face intensified pressure to strengthen the ethics and investigative infrastructure that governs misconduct complaints. Legislation to create an independent body for investigating congressional misconduct — a proposal that has circulated for years without gaining traction — may find renewed momentum. The coming weeks will reveal whether the Swalwell and Gonzales cases are isolated inflection points or the leading edge of a broader accountability movement that reshapes the culture and composition of Congress.