Who is Eric Swalwell? A bio of the Democratic presidential candidate

Editor's note: Eric Swalwell withdrew from the race on July 8, 2019, citing low poll numbers and fundraising after the first debate. 

Eric Swalwell, a 39-year-old California congressman, has made ending gun violence a central issue in his campaign. In an interview on ABC’s "The View," he said he would ban and buy back every semiautomatic assault weapon. Swalwell rolled out a platform that calls for universal background checks for all gun and ammunition purchases. Beyond restricting firearms, he wants to provide affordable health care and education to all Americans.

"Medicare for all is the obvious solution to a health care system that still drives people to financial ruin," he wrote in a March 2019 op-ed for NBC’s "Think."

Swalwell was first elected to Congress in 2013 after defeating Democrat Pete Stark, who had represented the district since 1973. During his term in office, Swalwell has supported repealing the No Child Left Behind Act and raising the cap on the Social Security payroll tax. Swalwell also proposed the idea of a "mobile Congress," under which members could cast their votes remotely, including from their districts. He supports marriage for same-sex couples and access to abortion. 

Name: Eric Michael Swalwell Jr.

Current occupation: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 15th district

Party: Democratic Party

Federal offices: U.S. House of Representatives, 2013-present; Committee assignments: Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and Committee on the Judiciary. Caucus memberships: American Sikh Congressional Caucus; Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus; Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus

State and local offices: 2001 and 2002, intern for Ellen Tauscher in the United States House of Representatives, 2012-present, representative for California's 15th Congressional District; 2006-2012 Alameda County deputy district attorney; 2006-2008 Dublin, California Heritage & Cultural Arts Commission; 2008-10, Dublin, Calif., Planning Commission; 2010-2013, Dublin, Calif. city council. 

Military: None. 

Books authored: None.

Education: 1999-2001 attended Campbell University in North Carolina on a soccer scholarship, did not complete because of the trauma. Transferred and received a B.A. in government and politics, University of Maryland, College Park, 2003. J.D., University of Maryland School of Law, 2006.

Birth date: November 16, 1980 

Personal life: Divorced his first wife. Married his second wife, Brittany Ann Watts, in October 2016. They have a son, Nelson, born in 2017 and a daughter, Kathryn, nicknamed "Cricket," born in 2018, as well as a dog named Penny.

Religion: Campaign did not respond.

Top issues: gun control, affordable healthcare, education access, reducing student debt; campaign video

Endorsements: Arizona Congressman Ruben Gallego

Miscellaneous: During his service in the House, has become known for extensive use of social media. In April 2016, The Hill dubbed him "the Snapchat king of Congress."

Other coverage: Announcement of presidential bid on Late Show, April 2019; profiles in The Mercury Times, The NYT, and in Business Insider (all in April 2019) ‘Ban and buy back every single assault weapon in America’ - Eric Swawell on ABC’s The View, Campaign website: https://ericswalwell.com/

Correction: This story has been updated to revise wording of material that was copied from Wikipedia and inadvertently published.