Eric Swalwell announces California Governor’s bid for Jimmy Kimmel show
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) took up the matter Jimmy Kimmel Live For the first time in his bid for governor of California, he entered a crowded field of contenders looking to succeed Gavin Newsom.
“The president is not going to like this offer,” Swalwell said, sitting with Kimmel.
“He won’t particularly like it tonight,” said the host.
They chatted a bit about the Jeffrey Epstein files before Swalwell said: “I came here tonight, Jimmy, to tell you and your audience that I am running to be the next governor of California.” Then the audience cheered.
Swalwell was elected to the House of Representatives in 2012, and during Trump’s term he became one of the president’s most prominent critics. He ran for president in 2020, but withdrew before the primary.
Kimmel himself has been a target of Trump, most recently this week when the president called on ABC to fire him.
In his country An introductory video for the campaignSwalwell immediately cited Trump, saying, “The next governor of California has two jobs: One, to keep the worst president in our history out of our homes, off our streets, out of our lives. … And two, bring us a new California.”
Kimmel asked Swalwell about a Justice Department investigation looking into possible mortgage fraud. “Bullshit,” Swalwell said, pointing to other investigations into other presidential rivals, including Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Earlier in the show, Kimmel responded to Trump’s latest attack, telling the audience: “He keeps saying our ratings are bad. And you should listen to him — because if anyone knows about bad ratings — it’s that guy.”
Swalwell joins a group of Democratic contenders that includes former Rep. Katie Porter, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, and another 2020 presidential contender, Tom Steyer, a hedge fund founder and climate activist who joined the race this week. They will compete in an open primary next year, alongside Republicans who include Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and former Fox News commentator Steve Helton.
There could be more. Developer Rick Caruso was eyeing the race, but also focused on Los Angeles and criticized Mayor Karen Bass, who faces re-election next year. The latest entry of candidates comes on the heels of the decisions of former Vice President Kamala Harris and Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) not to run.
Swalwell isn’t the first to announce a late-night campaign bid. Just over two decades ago, Arnold Schwarzenegger kept it up The Tonight Show with Jay Leno To say he was running in the California recall. In the 2020 presidential race, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) continued. The Late Show with Stephen Colbert To say she was running. The FCC has treated late-night talk shows as exempt from equal time requirements for broadcast stations, but the agency’s head in the Trump administration, Brendan Carr, recently suggested they would look at The View and other programs to see if they still qualify as a “bona fide news program.”