California Rep. Eric Swalwell announces run for governor ...

News
World
Americas
US politics

Eric Swalwell tells Jimmy Kimmel that he is running to be governor of California as a ‘fighter and protector’

Frequent Trump critic reveals his ambition to succeed Gavin Newsom and expresses doubt president will release Jeffrey Epstein files in full

Joe SommerladFriday 21 November 2025 09:50 GMTComments

CloseRelated: Jimmy Kimmel slams Donald Trump for calling reporter 'Piggy'

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox

Get our free Inside Washington email

Email*SIGN UP

I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice

California Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell announced he is running to be the Golden State’s next governor during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Thursday.

With incumbent Gavin Newsom term-limited and widely tipped to make a bid for the White House in 2028, Swalwell joins a crowded field that includes the state’s former attorney general and health secretary Xavier Becerra, ex-U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, and one-time presidential candidate Tom Steyer.

“I love California, it’s the greatest country in the world,” Swalwell told Kimmel. “But that’s why it p***es me off to see Californians running through the fields where they work from ICE agents or troops in our streets – it’s horrifying – or cancer research being cancelled.

California Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell announces his intention to run for governor on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Thursday November 20, 2025

open image in galleryCalifornia Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell announces his intention to run for governor on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Thursday November 20, 2025 (Jimmy Kimmel Live!)

“It’s awful to look at and our state, this great state, needs a fighter and a protector, someone who will bring prices down, lift wages up. And we can say that we’re the fourth-largest economy in the world – and we are and I love to brag about that – but what does that mean if you can’t afford to live here?

“So I’ve been in these fights, as a city council member, up in Dublin, my hometown, as a prosecutor in Oakland and taking on the most corrupt president ever in the U.S. Congress. But I’m ready to bring this fight home. So, I came here tonight Jimmy to tell you and your audience that I am running to be the next governor of California.”

The congressman’s announcement drew a standing ovation from the studio audience. Still, the host quickly brought his guest back down to earth by telling him he needed to make a definite call on the state of his beard, saying he was currently operating in a “beard nether-region” that needed to be addressed.

Swalwell subsequently posted a campaign statement to his website that said he was running for the governor’s mansion “because prices are too high and people are scared.”

“California’s next governor has two jobs. One, keep the worst president in history out of our homes, out of our streets, and out of our lives,” he added.

Elsewhere in his interview with Kimmel, Swalwell was asked about Congress’s actions this week to secure the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files from the Department of Justice, expressing doubt that Donald Trump’s administration would release the documents in full.

I don’t trust this guy for one moment,” he said. “In fact, he has acted this entire time like somebody who really has something to hide. But sometimes… enough public sentiment can be built and some measure of justice can be brought.”

open image in gallerySwalwell and Kimmel discuss Donald Trump and the Jeffrey Epstein files on Thursday’s show (Jimmy Kimmel Live!)

He vowed that the elected representatives who had spearheaded the campaign to release the files would continue to fight. He noted Republican Rep. Thomas Massie’s promise to read the names of Epstein’s accomplices and enablers on the House floor if need be.

Swalwell also dismissed the DOJ’s investigation into his mortgage record in response to allegations of fraud as “nonsense,” saying that the same applied to similar probes the administration has launched into other Democrats the president dislikes, including California Sen. Adam Schiff, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Federal Reserve Board of Governors member Lisa Cook.

Earlier this week, Trump revived his long-running feud with Kimmel, after leading the charge in September to see the late-night comedian taken off air over his remarks on the assassination of Charlie Kirk, which led to a brief suspension and a public outcry on the host’s behalf.

“Why does ABC Fake News keep Jimmy Kimmel, a man with NO TALENT and VERY POOR TELEVISION RATINGS, on the air?” Trump seethed on Truth Social on Wednesday. “Why do the TV Syndicates put up with it? Also, totally biased coverage. Get the bum off the air!!!”

The president appeared angered by Kimmel's joke about “Hurricane Epstein… making landfall” and by his criticism of the president for calling a female reporter “Piggy” aboard Air Force One.

Kimmel responded to Trump’s latest attack during his opening monologue on Thursday, commenting, “Talk about a snowflake, this guy. Every five weeks, he flips out and wants me fired. If you got this many threats from a neighbor, you’d have no problem getting a restraining order.

“It’s also sweet that, even in the middle of the biggest sex scandal in the history of the American presidency, he takes precious time on the toilet to post about our show.

“Mr President, I admire your tenacity. If you’re watching tonight, which I presume you are, how about this: I’ll go when you go, OK? We’ll be a team. Let’s ride off into the sunset together like Butch Cassidy and the Suntan Kid. And until then, if I may borrow a phrase from you: Quiet, piggy.”

More about

Eric SwalwellJimmy KimmelCaliforniaDonald TrumpJeffrey EpsteinDepartment Of JusticeThomas MassieGavin NewsomXavier Becerratom steyerKatie PorterLetitia JamesAdam SchiffCharlie Kirk