Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, currently mounting a bid for governor, is staring down a wave of new scrutiny. The trouble centers on allegations that he used campaign funds to pay a live-in nanny who reportedly lacked valid work authorization. Misryoum reports indicate that the employee, Brazilian national Amanda Barbosa, first began working for the family back in 2021.
FEC data shows a paper trail of $3,914 in 2021 and $46,930 in 2022. It gets complicated when you look at the dates, though. Swalwell sponsored her for a green card in late 2022—right as her visa was hitting the expiration mark. But then a Department of Homeland Security complaint, filed by filmmaker Joel Gilbert, claims she kept working for the family through 2023 and 2024. Actually, it’s unclear if she had the right paperwork during that specific window, but the complaint suggests she didn’t. Or maybe she did? Regardless, the oversight is becoming a major headache for his gubernatorial campaign.
The smell of stale coffee is hanging heavy in the office this morning as we track these filings. It feels like every time a new document drops, the story shifts slightly. FEC records show that while direct payments to Barbosa supposedly stopped, the campaign reimbursed Swalwell $52,262 for “childcare” expenses. Critics are calling that a workaround—a way to keep the arrangement afloat while the legal status remained in question. The Department of Labor says her certification was finally approved in 2024, yet FEC records show she received another $38,905 in 2025. It’s a lot to keep track of.
Then there’s the other side of this. This isn’t the only fire he’s fighting.
Multiple women have come forward with serious accusations of sexual assault and harassment against the lawmaker. A former staffer alleged that he assaulted her in 2019, and again in 2024 after she had already left his employ. She told Misryoum that during the second incident, she was incapacitated—unable to give consent. It’s a heavy set of charges, and frankly, the political fallout is starting to look inevitable.
Even members of his own party are turning up the heat. Rep. Jimmy Gomez has publicly suggested that Swalwell should step aside to allow for some kind of accountability, or at least to clear the air. But Swalwell isn’t backing down yet. He told the San Francisco Chronicle that these claims are “false” and frames the timing as a calculated move against the frontrunner. Whether that holds water with voters is another question entirely, one that the campaign is going to have to answer quickly if they want to stay in this race—or maybe they already have.