The California governor’s race was upended in April when Eric Swalwell, a popular, social media-savvy Democratic congressman from the San Francisco Bay Area, dropped out amid multiple sexual assault allegations. Mr. Swalwell also resigned from Congress. While acknowledging “mistakes in judgment,” he has vociferously denied committing criminal acts and insisted the encounters were consensual.
He had been considered one of the leading contenders, if not the front-runner, but the seriousness of the allegations led to a swift fall. Labor unions and high-ranking Democrats pulled their endorsements, and more than 50 members of his staff at the time spoke out in support of his accusers. He scrapped his candidacy two days after CNN and The San Francisco Chronicle detailed the alleged assaults and sexual misconduct.
His departure from the race led to a frenetic scramble among his Democratic rivals to seize momentum in the campaign.
Initially, the move appeared to benefit the two Democrats who had been polling closest to him: Katie Porter, a former congresswoman, and the billionaire Tom Steyer. Both presented themselves as anti-Trump liberals and seemed to be more familiar to voters than others in the race.
Ultimately, Xavier Becerra, a former congressman, state attorney general and cabinet official in the Biden administration, seemed to be the top beneficiary of the shake-up. Emphasizing his experience, he surged in polling, rising from about 5 percent support in March to more than 20 percent in several surveys before the election.
