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Eric Swalwell is out. Now what?

Eric Swalwell is finished.Not just finished as a candidate for governor. Finished as a serious political force in California.His announcement that he is resigning from Congress confirms what was already obvious: This scandal was politically unsurvivable. 

Reports on Monday said he plans to step down, but his public statement did not clearly specify the effective date. 

The speed of the collapse is still astonishing.One minute Swalwell was a top-tier Democrat in a crowded governor’s race. The next, he was a toxic liability abandoned by allies, donors, labor, and Democratic power brokers who clearly decided he was no longer worth defending. That is not a campaign setback.That is a political execution.The allegations were serious. The fallout was immediate. 

And once the House Ethics Committee opened an investigation and 55 former staff members came out with an open letter basically saying they believe the women, the last fantasy that Swalwell could somehow ride this out should have died on the spot. Now comes the next question: What does his resignation actually mean for his congressional seat?That part is still murky.

What happens next is not up to “Sacramento.” It is up to Gavin Newsom. 

California law gives the governor the power to call a special election to........

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