Rep. Eric Swalwell, of California, became a mainstay on cable news in recent years, always willing to claw his progressive agenda forward and battle over President Trump. With his cable news cred as his backdrop, Swalwell launched a 2020 presidential campaign back in February but never really gained any meaningful traction. The high point came for Swalwell when he made the cut for the first Democratic debate last month but apparently, it’s been all downhill from there.
Reports indicate today that Swalwell will be ending his 2020 Presidential run with the intention of running for his fifth term in Congress.
Swalwell reportedly had been planning to at least campaign through the month of June before deciding whether to pull the plug on his struggling campaign, according to the New York Post:
Rep. Eric Swalwell is dropping out of the 2020 Democratic presidential race, according to a report on Monday.
The California lawmaker will hold a news conference in the afternoon to announce that he’s exiting the race to run for a fifth House term, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Swalwell recently canceled campaign events scheduled in New Hampshire on July 3-4.
In an interview last month, Swalwell, 38, said he would give himself the month of June to campaign before making a decision about his future.
“We need this field to start shrinking so candidates can distinguish themselves. I hope to be part of the field as it shrinks. If I don’t, I’m going to be realistic about my options,” he told The Hill.
With Swalwell’s exit, the tie-breaking scenario for the next Democratic debate becomes less likely as Montana Gov. Steve Bullock will basically take Swalwell’s spot on the debate stage.
According to most polls, Swalwell was sitting around 1% in support, barely a statistical blip on the radar for most voters. His far-left progressive platform was being usurped by more popular candidates, such as Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren, and he lacked a national fundraising pool to continue providing him financial support.
Still, it’s somewhat surprising Swalwell didn’t hang around longer to see if he could get on the next debate stage. More national exposure would help raise his profile even if his chance of winning the Democratic nomination in 2020 was essentially zero.
“Pass the torch”
Perhaps Swalwell will be best known for his “pass the torch” comments directed at former vice president Joe Biden as he implied that a younger candidate should get the nomination:
Some voters may agree with Swalwell, but based on poll numbers, they don’t think he should be the one who takes the torch on the next relay segment.
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