Tom Steyer Files Complaint Accusing Xavier Becerra of Undisclosed Influencer Payments

California gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer filed a complaint Tuesday with the state Fair Political Practices Commission alleging that rival Xavier Becerra violated disclosure rules by paying social media influencers. The complaint accuses Becerra of 50 violations of state law for failing to notify influencers of political disclosure requirements and for not listing the payments in campaign finance reports.

Steyer campaign general counsel Ryan Hughes wrote that the evidence should meet the probable cause standard for an enforcement action.

The complaint identifies two influencers.

Jay Gonzalez, who describes himself as a Mexican American social media strategist, received $16,250 to create four videos. Between March 23 and May 13, Gonzalez posted at least 34 pieces of pro-Becerra content, some of which the complaint says lacked required disclaimers or had them added after publication.

A second influencer identified as Mermaid Mama Maggie, or Maggie Reed, was offered $4,500 for one video or $7,000 for two videos. The complaint states Reed posted four pro-Becerra videos between September 22 and May 15 without disclaimers. Neither set of payments appears on Becerra campaign disclosure forms, according to the filing.

Becerra campaign spokesperson Jonathan Underland said the campaign has never made payments to a creator in exchange for a post and accused Steyer of following the MAGA playbook.

Steyer has faced a similar complaint regarding his own use of influencers. The Steyer campaign has described those earlier accusations as baseless and stated that all payments were disclosed and that influencers were informed of disclosure requirements.