A Florida congresswoman accused Arizona’s Ruben Gallego of misconduct, claiming without evidence that the U.S. senator was involved in an incident with former Congressman Eric Swalwell and a sex worker.
A spokesperson for Gallego denied the accusation as “right wing conspiracy theories being parroted by a far right member of Congress.”
Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna made the claims against Gallego in an interview Thursday with CBS News.
Earlier in the week, she issued a cryptic statement on X, claiming Senate Majority Leader John Thune needed to look into “very disturbing” allegations against a senator.
On CBS News, Luna identified Gallego as the unnamed senator, and noted his close ties to Swalwell, a California gubernatorial candidate who suspended his campaign and resigned from Congress this week amid growing backlash over allegations of sexual assault and misconduct.
Luna told CBS “there is a woman that allegedly is coming forward with attorneys [and] wants to go on-record about an incident that occurred between the two of them at the same time, and the event was sexual in nature, allegedly."
She further accused Gallego of “knowingly engaging in purchasing someone for sex.” And Luna claimed, without evidence, that some allegations involved campaign finance violations.
Shortly before Luna’s interview with CBS News, Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters he was aware of Luna’s allegations on social media, and that the matter had been referred to the Senate’s Select Committee on Ethics.
As for Gallego, a spokesperson said the senator “has not received notification or been contacted by the ethics committee.”
Thune’s office did not immediately respond to KJZZ’s request for comment on Friday.
Gallego has faced increased scrutiny for his friendship with Swalwell, a seven-term congressman who Gallego initially defended as rumors of sexual misconduct began to spread against the California Democrat.
Gallego later said he was duped by Swalwell, and that he was previously unaware of “actual accusations” against Swalwell for predatory behavior.
The senator has also denied engaging in sexual misconduct toward his own staff, other Capitol staffers, or any other woman — likening any rumors of the sort to political attacks waged against him during his 2024 campaign for U.S. Senate against Republican Kari Lake.
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