Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales resign from Congress

Tony Gonzales is a US Navy veteran and, as of Tuesday, April 14th, a former member of the US House of Representatives. He resigned. As of Tuesday, Eric Swalwell is also a former member of the US House of Representatives. He also stepped down. 

One is a Republican, the other is a Democrat. But the reason why each of them stepped down transcends political parties or policy, and that’s my point today. We should not choose representatives as though they were robots, selecting or deselecting policies, but as moral agents and models—people we believe exemplify the character of a good American citizen. 

Politicians don’t need to be perfect. The ballots would be blank if they did. Nevertheless, given the heated, divisive political climate of the states, I’ll argue character is even more important, not less.

Tony Gonzales’ adultery 

Let’s cover the fallout of Gonzales’ failings first. He represented Texas’s 23rd congressional district for five years and has a family with six kids. Gonzales committed adultery with a political aide named Regina Santos-Aviles. Her life fell apart when her husband found out. 

She and her husband later separated, and, devastatingly, she ended her own life by setting herself on fire in September of 2025. For context, at the time, Santos-Aviles told police her husband was gay and having an affair.

In February of this year, news broke of Gonzales’ affair with her. Another former staffer accused him of sending her explicit messages. Gonzales then lied, saying the allegations were “completely untruthful” in November of 2025. However, Gonzales finally admitted to the affair with Santos-Aviles earlier this year, calling it a “lapse in judgment.” 

To his credit, Gonzales also said, “I take full responsibility for those actions. Since then, I have reconciled with my wife, Angel. I’ve asked God to forgive me, which he has. And my faith is as strong as ever.” 

However, he also responded to other Republicans calling for his resignation: “We can’t let anything slow us down from executing President Trump’s agenda.” This language smacks of the ends justifying the means, and despite his recognition of his failing and need for a savior, his apology did not feel sincere. 

When the House Ethics Committee announced a plan to bring expulsion resolutions against Gonzales for unethical behavior, it seems Gonzales saw the writing on the wall. He resigned on Tuesday before the expulsion could be voted on. 

Eric Swalwell’s sexual assault allegations 

What about former representative Eric Swalwell? A Democrat, Swalwell represented the 15th and 14th districts of California at different times. He’s also a family man, married with three children. 

The allegations against Swalwell are, in many ways, far more serious and drastic. He vehemently denies them, but he has been accused of rape and sexual assault. CNN’s exclusive reporting portrays allegations so ugly and horrific that they’re difficult to read. 

If the testimonies are true, it paints a grim picture. One woman even accuses him of drugging her and physically choking her. Although criminal charges have not yet been filed, the evidence against Swalwell appears substantial.

In the end, Swalwell too resigned before he could be expelled from the House; he also withdrew from his campaign to become California’s governor. 

“I am deeply sorry to my family, staff, and constituents for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past,” Swalwell posted. “I will fight the serious false allegation made against me. However, I must take responsibility and ownership for the mistakes I did make.” 

This unclear apology does not substantiate which allegations against him are true and false. 

So, in the end, why detail all these horrible moral failings?

The Christian response: qualified leadership 

First, the Christian worldview makes room for such failures. The biblical authors outline R-rated sins like incest, adultery, violence, and gang rape. It encourages accountability, repentance, justice, and grace—and promises retribution against sin not covered by the blood of Christ. 

Second, it provides guidelines for ethical accountability for Christian leaders (though, of course, they did not live under any modern form of democratic representation). Believers should make no pretense of being perfect, but there is a holistically righteous life, in step with the Holy Spirit, that qualifies someone for positions of power. Leaders must be “sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.” (1 Timothy 3:2-3) 

These are qualifications for overseers in the church, not political candidates—but the wisdom applies. As John Adams famously wrote, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” To think that we should exempt the leaders of the country from this injunction is absurd. 

Character in politics 

When political, social, and cultural divisions deepen, and rhetoric heats up, there are two ways to go: doubling down on hate and vitriol, or growing into love, humility, respect, and peace. 

The best way to keep this political experiment of America churning, in my view, is to begin by at least electing character again—not merely for power or policy. As Representative Moran, a Texas Republican representing my hometown, recently wrote, “We The People should do our best to elect men and women to public office who have character, integrity, wisdom, and virtue (or, at the very least, strive to attain it).”

And it’s amazing how often the dearth of character precedes an election. 

What can you do to advance justice?

The system we use to hold people accountable is highly imperfect, and the slow wheels of justice can leave evil uncrushed. There’s bipartisan discussion of how both Gonzales and Swalwell, in a way, avoided accountability by stepping down before they could be expelled. In the case of Swalwell, legal action may be taken by the victims of his alleged abuse, but that will take time.

While we can only do so much to hold our elected officials accountable (not voting for them), we can rest assured in a divine, eternal justice that will account for all evil. We can participate in that justice today in a few ways. 

One, by voting. 

Two, by carefully heeding the voice of alleged victims and waiting for the justice system to take its course before over-scandalizing. 

Three, by reporting misuse of power in our own circles to the relevant authorities.

Four, and most importantly, by addressing these same sins and temptations in our own personal lives. We all have power, no matter how small. Submitting this power to God and abiding in Jesus to produce good fruits of character in us will minimize the injustice perpetrated by us. 

How can you carry out these four participations of justice in your life today?