THE ALASKA STORY
Aug. 17, 2026 – When Mary Peltola served in Congress, her biggest political ally and campaign fundraiser was Eric Swalwell, who is back in the headlines after newly declassified FBI files revealed that he admitted having sexual relations with a woman suspected of working with Chinese intelligence.
Swalwell, a California Democrat who served alongside Peltola, traveled to Juneau three years ago in in September 2023 to help raise money for her reelection campaign. He was a featured guest at a private fundraiser on North Douglas Island hosted by prominent Juneau Democrats.
At the time, Swalwell was already known publicly for his association with Christine “Fang Fang” Fang, a Chinese national who had worked her way into California political circles and helped Swalwell’s political operation.
The newly released records provide considerably more detail about the relationship than had previously been made public.
According to FBI interview summaries declassified by President Donald Trump and released Monday by the White House Government Transparency Task Force, Swalwell told agents in May 2015 that he had “physical relations” with Fang on a “handful of occasions.”
Swalwell described the relationship as casual, saying the two never dated and were not romantically involved. He told investigators their last sexual encounter occurred around March 2015.
During a second FBI interview in March 2016, Swalwell described one encounter in which Fang allegedly arrived unannounced at his apartment and banged on the door. Swalwell said the two “hooked up” after he had taken Ambien, a prescription sleep medication, and that he remembered little about the encounter.
The records were part of an FBI investigation into Fang’s contacts with Swalwell and her activities within Democratic political networks.
The files indicate that the FBI had previously considered recruiting Fang as a confidential source under the code name “Rusty Thumbs.” Investigators suspected that she had connections to China’s Ministry of State Security, the communist country’s civilian intelligence agency. The records reportedly identified her parents as Chinese intelligence officers.
One FBI memo said Fang told an undercover contact that she could use her sexuality to influence politicians because she was “young and pretty.”
The FBI later opened an investigation that examined whether internships and access to Swalwell were being offered in exchange for campaign contributions. Investigators suspected that some donations were routed through third parties to disguise their true sources and that foreign nationals may have been involved.
Federal law prohibits foreign nationals from contributing to American political campaigns.
Financial records cited in the newly released files reportedly showed that Fang helped arrange at least four conduit contributions to Swalwell’s campaign during 2013 and 2014. She also recommended prospective interns to his campaign and congressional offices.
Swalwell told the FBI that he regarded Fang’s internship recommendations as coming through the Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association, a politically active California organization with which she was associated.
The investigation did not establish that Swalwell participated in a quid-pro-quo arrangement or personally violated federal corruption laws. He was removed as a subject of the investigation in 2017 and was never charged.
Fang reportedly left the United States after becoming suspicious that one of her contacts was working with the government. She was later barred from returning.
Swalwell has maintained that he cooperated with federal authorities and cut off contact with Fang after receiving a defensive briefing from the FBI in 2015. A separate House Ethics Committee review closed in 2023 without taking action against him.
The newly released records nevertheless show that Swalwell’s relationship with Fang was far more intimate than the public was originally told when the controversy became national news in 2020.
Three years after that story broke, Peltola welcomed Swalwell to Alaska as a featured fundraiser. The Democrats just didn’t care about her liaison with the shifty Californian.
The September 2023 event was held at a private residence on North Douglas Island. Swalwell appeared with Democratic Reps. Mike Thompson of California and Dan Kildee of Michigan, while the local host committee included state Sen. Jesse Kiehl, state Rep. Sara Hannan, former state Sen. Beth Kerttula and other Juneau Democrats.
Swalwell’s appearance drew criticism not only because of the Fang controversy but also because of his deep opposition to Alaska resource development.
He sponsored legislation seeking to repeal the oil and gas program in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and turn approximately 1.56 million acres of the coastal plain into federal wilderness.
Swalwell had also worked to help Democrat-backed Al Gross defeat Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan in 2020. Sullivan prevailed.
Peltola nevertheless treated Swalwell as a valuable political ally who could help bring donors together for her campaign.
Peltola lost her House seat to Republican Nick Begich in 2024. She is now challenging Sullivan for the US Senate.
Swalwell later resigned from Congress and abandoned his campaign for California governor amid separate misconduct allegations that he denied.
The FBI files and related documents are available through the White House’s election-integrity document portal.
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