<p>Fourteen House Democrats in battleground districts have received more than $30,000 from Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-CA), who faces allegations of sexual misconduct from a female staffer, over the last several election cycles.</p>
<p>None of the Democrats have stated whether they intend to return the money when asked by the Washington Examiner. Each received the contributions through Gomez’s leadership PAC, Generation Go.</p>
<p>Gomez is under investigation by the Ethics Committee following an April New York Post story that alleged he was seen kissing an aide. Another woman interviewed by the committee has alleged that Gomez sexually assaulted her, according to the woman’s lawyers. Gomez stated he did not violate any House ethics rules but acknowledged making mistakes in his marriage.</p>
<p>Rep. Adam Gray (D-CA) has received four donations since 2022 totaling $4,000. Reps. Darren Soto (D-FL), Derek Tran (D-CA), Josh Harder (D-CA), Greg Landsman (D-OH), Steven Horsford (D-NV), and Dave Min (D-CA) each received $2,000 from Gomez.</p>
<p>Both Gray and Landsman are facing competitive reelection battles, with Landsman’s Cincinnati-area seat redrawn last year. Soto was recently redrawn into a Republican-leaning district near Orlando, and Republicans are optimistic about ousting him this November.</p>
<p>Rep. Pat Ryan (D-NY) also took $2,000 from Gomez. In July, Ryan pledged to refund money his campaign received from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee after voting to end military aid to Israel. The Washington Examiner reported that this could cost him nearly $800,000 in campaign funds.</p>
<p>The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) received $35,500 from Gomez in 2020.</p>
<p>The DCCC did not indicate whether it would return the money. Instead, when asked about the funds, the group referenced money Republican candidates have taken from Reps. Chuck Edwards (R-NC) and Max Miller (R-OH), both of whom are involved in misconduct scandals. Edwards announced he would not seek reelection, while Miller decided to remain on the ballot amid a legal fight over allegations of domestic violence.</p>
<p>“Republicans spend all their time virtue signaling about how self-righteous they are just to turn around and take dirty money from disgraced, disgusting, and abhorrent men like Chuck Edwards and Max Miller,” DCCC spokesman Viet Shelton told the Washington Examiner. “They should stop with the fake outrage. Each of them will lose their jobs for their cruelty and hypocrisy in November anyway.”</p>
<p>Reps. Gabe Vasquez (D-NM) and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA) also each received $3,500 from Gomez. Gluesenkamp Perez, who represents one of the most competitive seats in the country, previously called for both former Reps. Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales to step down amid sexual misconduct allegations earlier this year. She has also shown a willingness to buck her party when she voted to censure Reps. Al Green (D-TX), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and Chuy Garcia (D-IL), but has remained silent on the money she received from Gomez.</p>
<p>Reps. Don Davis (D-NC), Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX), and Nellie Pou (D-NJ) received $3,000 from Gomez. Davis and Gonzalez both face challenging reelection battles.</p>
<p>Rep. Emilia Sykes (D-OH), who is vice chairwoman of the Democratic Women’s Caucus and has been vocal on domestic violence and sexual misconduct allegations this Congress, received $1,000 in 2024.</p>
<p>“Voters are going to decide this election based on who has lowered their taxes, secured the border, kept their communities safe, and are standing up to the radical socialist agenda consuming the Democrat Party,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Mike Marinella told the Washington Examiner. “Nobody should take these Democrat candidates seriously when their supposed principles disappear the second they must answer for their scandal-plagued colleagues like Jimmy Gomez, Eric Swalwell, Ruben Gallego, Bobby Pulido, and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick.”</p>
<p>The Ethics Committee announced its investigation into Gomez last week, after informing CNN earlier this year that they had begun the early stages of an investigation.</p>
<p>“Years ago, I made personal mistakes outside my marriage that have caused real pain to my wife and family,” Gomez stated at the time. “Although my actions were consensual in nature and haven’t violated the law or House ethics rules, that doesn’t diminish the impact that these mistakes have made on those I care about the most.</p>
<p>I take full responsibility and have committed myself to working through the pain privately with my wife and family,” he wrote. “I sought professional assistance to help re-center and heal the relationships that mean everything to me, and move forward with the honesty, transparency, and respect that everyone deserves from the people they love. I continue to do this work.”</p>
<p>Gomez will face progressive Democrat Angela Gonzales-Torres in November, after he received 46% of the vote earlier this year, with Gonzales-Torres receiving 30.7%. The state uses a top-two primary system, meaning the two candidates that receive the most votes, regardless of party, will advance to the November election.</p>