Rep. Eric Swalwell on Tuesday pledged that, if elected governor of California, he would use state power to push back on federal immigration officers, including requiring them to “unmask” while on duty. Speaking at a town hall in Sacramento, the state capital, Swalwell said he would also make federal immigration enforcement officers ineligible for state jobs and seek to take away their driver’s licenses if they refused to comply.
“I will root for the success of anyone who invests and does business in California, if they work with me to lift the wages of hard-working Californians and expand the benefits,” Swalwell said at the event. He positioned the immigration pledge as part of a broader campaign strategy that emphasizes confronting the Trump administration and aligning with organized labor and progressive priorities, according to the description of the town hall.
Swalwell framed his immigration approach as a response to enforcement actions that affected California communities in recent years. He said Los Angeles was among the first places the Trump administration deployed the National Guard for immigration operations, and he said Los Angeles was also the target of one of the administration’s first large-scale immigration sweeps last summer.
The town hall announcement included specifics about what Swalwell said he would demand from officers while on duty. He told the crowd that federal immigration officers would need to unmask, describing the challenge as a direct counter to what he characterized as their sense of invincibility. He told attendees, “They think they’re invincible. They’re not,” and he did not outline a detailed plan for how the governor’s office would carry out the measures.
The promise also appeared geared toward an electorate deciding on multiple candidates with no clear single favorite heading into the June 2 primary. The event kicked off a series of campaign events Swalwell planned around the state with less than a month remaining until mail-in ballots are set to go out to voters ahead of the top-two election.
Under California’s “top two” primary system, the two highest vote-getters advance to the November general election regardless of party. Democrats have expressed concern about a possible lock-out if no clear front-runner emerges within the Democratic field, where Swalwell is among candidates including billionaire Tom Steyer and former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter.
Swalwell also said he wants to address ongoing state budget gaps with a new corporate tax and to use state funding to pay for health care for low-income people, including immigrants. He further said he supports letting state employees work remotely, a position that has been contentious in Sacramento.
In recent weeks, Swalwell has faced criticism from fellow Democrats over whether he showed up for votes in Congress and whether he actually lives in California. At the Tuesday event, he disputed those criticisms and said he’s “not going to be distracted.”
Swalwell, an Iowa native elected to Congress in 2012 who represents a district east of San Francisco, has previously run for president, including a short-lived bid in 2019. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is term-limited and has not endorsed a successor. On the Republican side, the race includes candidates such as Steve Hilton, a former Fox News host who won Trump’s endorsement this week, and Sheriff Chad Bianco.