Residents of a San Francisco Bay Area congressional district went to the polls Tuesday to decide who will take over the seat left vacant by Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, who stepped down from Congress after facing allegations of sexual assault.
The special primary election is being held for California’s 14th Congressional District, a heavily Democratic area covering East Bay communities including Fremont, Hayward, and Livermore. Swalwell routinely defeated Republican opponents by large margins during his time representing the district.
A candidate who earns more than 50% of Tuesday’s vote will win the seat outright and serve the rest of Swalwell’s term through January. If no one clears that threshold, the top two finishers — regardless of party — will meet in an August 18 runoff election.
Eleven candidates appear on the ballot. Among the leading Democrats are Aisha Wahab, a state senator who built her campaign around lowering housing costs, and Melissa Hernandez, a Bay Area Rapid Transit board director and former mayor of the East Bay city of Dublin.
On the Republican side, the field includes Wendy Huang, a real estate investor, and Dena Maldonado, who operates a small flower business.
This special election is separate from a regular primary held June 2 for a full term beginning in January. Many of the same candidates appeared on both ballots. Wahab and Hernandez finished as the top two vote-getters in that June contest and are already set to face each other in the November general election.
For Wahab or Hernandez, a victory in Tuesday’s special election would offer a chance to serve in the seat for several months before the full-term race — potentially boosting their name recognition and giving them governing experience to highlight on the campaign trail.
Also in the running is Rakhi Israni Singh, an attorney and businesswoman who ran in the June statewide primary but did not finish in the top two. She is seeking the opportunity to fill the remainder of Swalwell’s term through Tuesday’s ballot.
Swalwell served seven terms in Congress before announcing his resignation in April. He also withdrew from California’s governor’s race at the same time. His departure came after the San Francisco Chronicle published a report alleging he sexually assaulted a woman on two occasions, including during a period when she was employed by him. CNN later reported that additional women accused him of sending inappropriate messages and explicit photos.
Swalwell has consistently denied all of the allegations against him, but stated that staying in Congress would be unfair to the people he represented.
