By Caitlin Yilek
Updated April 14, 2026 / CBS News
Washington — Another woman came forward Tuesday alleging former Rep. Eric Swalwell drugged and raped her after he offered to help her career in 2018.
Swalwell announced Sunday he would end his campaign for governor of California and said Monday he planned to resign from Congress; he officially resigned on Tuesday. He has called prior allegations against him false and politically motivated.
The woman, who identified herself as Lonna Drewes at a Beverly Hills news conference with attorneys, said Swalwell invited her to a political event but they ended up at his hotel room because he said he needed to get paperwork. “I believe he drugged my drink. I only had one glass of wine,” Drewes said. “When I arrived at his hotel room, I was already incapacitated, and I couldn’t move my arms or my body.” She said, “He raped me and he choked me,” and that she lost consciousness during the encounter.
Drewes said she did not get a rape kit but disclosed the alleged assault to people close to her and recorded the events in a handwritten calendar. She said she discussed the incident in therapy at a sexual assault center in Connecticut and that a delay in coming forward was “driven by fear” of Swalwell’s political power and legal background. She said the alleged assault had a profound impact on her mental health and led to unhealthy self-medication.
Drewes said she had met Swalwell twice before the alleged third encounter, during which he offered connections to help her software company. Her attorney, Lisa Bloom, said they planned to file a police report with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Drewes said she came forward to “stand with the other women who have come forward.”
Later Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said its Special Victims Bureau was investigating a report from an adult female alleging she was sexually assaulted by Swalwell in July 2018 at a business in West Hollywood. Once the investigation is complete, the department said it will present the case to the L.A. County District Attorney’s Office for filing consideration.
Swalwell’s attorney, Sara Azari, said in a statement Tuesday that Swalwell “categorically and unequivocally denies each and every allegation of sexual misconduct and assault that has been leveled against him.” Azari called the accusations “false, fabricated, and deeply offensive — a calculated and transparent political hit job.”
Several women have recently come forward after the San Francisco Chronicle published an account from a former staffer who alleged Swalwell sexually assaulted her twice when she was too intoxicated to consent. Two other women, Annika Albrecht and Ally Sammarco, told CBS News Swalwell allegedly sent unsolicited explicit Snapchat messages. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office confirmed it is investigating sexual assault allegations against Swalwell, who also faced an inquiry from the House Ethics Committee and pressure from Democratic leaders, including former Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The allegations have reverberated across Capitol Hill and coincided with political fallout for other members.