Rep. Eric Swalwell is facing scrutiny over campaign spending after records showed more than $200,000 in campaign funds were used to reimburse childcare expenses, raising questions about the boundaries between personal costs and political activity. The issue comes as the California Democrat prepares a run for governor.
A Fox News Digital review of Federal Election Commission filings from 2019 through 2025 found Swalwell’s congressional campaign reimbursed him over $200,000 for childcare-related expenses. More than $22,000 of that total appeared in just three months, from October through December 2025. Recent gubernatorial filings show three payments for “childcare” totaling over $6,000, made out to his wife, Brittany Swalwell.
The filings also list over $102,000 paid between 2021 and 2025 to an individual identified as a childcare provider. Additional payments include $57,324.40 to a Washington, D.C.-based child development center, along with reimbursements for payroll tax, travel, food, and childcare tied to campaign events.
Federal law bars campaign funds from being used for personal expenses. However, a 2018 FEC opinion allowed childcare costs caused by campaign activity. In 2022, Swalwell sought further clarification and received approval to use campaign funds for overnight childcare tied to campaign travel.
Allen Mendenhall of the Heritage Foundation criticized the practice, calling childcare an “inherently personal” expense. “It’s an expense that candidates with young children will incur regardless of whether they’re in a campaign,” he said. Mendenhall warned the policy “opens the slippery slope” for other personal costs and creates “a special class of politicians who are insulated from normal constraints.”
The campaign spending further highlights the ongoing debate over campaign finance rules and donor transparency.
