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Sen. Ruben Gallego, an Arizona Democrat who was a close friend of disgraced former Rep. Eric Swalwell, used campaign money to fund luxury trips with his family and pay for childcare expenses, according to campaign finance documents and a source familiar with his finances.
Gallego, through his leadership of the PAC, paid for a trip to the Caribbean island where he escaped to Saint Barthélemy, Disneyland, Disney World, Miami and Chicago, a financial show. A source familiar with Gallego’s spending told Politico that the attorney often brought his family over for luxury meals, and used donor money to pay for childcare services.
“He’s just using his campaign account like it’s his trash bag,” the source said. “He’s using campaign money to live a lavish lifestyle.”
Campaign finance records show that Gallego’s leadership PAC and his campaign have paid more than $18,000 toward child care expenses, including a $400 payment to his wife’s mother.
FIREBRAND ON THE LEFT USES GOOD CAMPAIGN MONEY ON HOTELS, ‘TOP-TIER’ LIMO SERVICES
Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., leaves the Senate Chamber in Washington, DC, on Dec. 11, 2025, after two controversial health care bills aimed at reducing rising premiums failed. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
“This is not breaking news,” she told Politco about childcare costs and family travel. “Due to the rising cost of child care and the burden it places on the budgets of American families, Democrats and Republicans in Congress and the White House alike are frequently traveling with their wives and children, as permitted by the FEC.”
For other campaign expenses, Gallego and Swalwell set up a joint fundraising committee to pay for Super Bowl LVII tickets in 2023. The event, which cost more than $37,000, was billed as a fundraiser where they persuaded sponsors to attend the game and have brunch with them in order to provide a high enough campaign contribution.
The two lawmakers each raised less than $8,000 for the event, effectively shutting down the joint committee after the game.
A spokesperson for Gallego told Politico that “the tickets were purchased at fair market value” and that “hosting sponsors and supporters at sporting events at their venues is a standard, two-way practice.”
CONFIDENT SENATOR WITH DEEP DEEM TIES HAS PAID FAMILY OVER $350K IN HIS CAMPAIGN SUPPORT
Sen. Ruben Gallego listens during a town hall at the NOAH Cholla Health Center in Scottsdale, Ariz., on March 17, 2025. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
A source familiar with Gallego’s finances told Politico that the trip to Saint Barthélemy was for his wife’s manager’s birthday and that the trip to Miami, where he collected $9,000 in bills from a beach hotel, was to celebrate his wife’s birthday.
A spokesperson for Gallego explained to Politico that the trip to Saint Barthélemy was part of “a lot of political engagement and fundraising — as senators do,” and that during the Miami trip the senator and his wife “attended a lot of political and fundraising events.”
State lawmakers are prohibited from using funds donated to their primary campaign committees for “personal use,” or expenses unrelated to their campaigns for office. Leadership PACs, however, are held to a looser standard in which expenditures are allowed as long as they serve some type of fundraising purpose.
There is nothing to suggest that any of Gallego’s leadership PAC expenditures were made illegally.
TALARICO CRIES TEXAS CONTINUES AS CAMPAIGN FOR FOREIGN FINANCIAL POWER
Arizona Democratic Senate Rep. Ruben Gallego speaks at the Harris-Walz ‘Fighting for Breeding Freedom’ bus stop at Arizona State University in Tempe, Ariz., on Nov. 4, 2024. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Gallego is not the only member of the legislature who has used his PAC leadership in this way, as many legislators use their committees to fund expensive trips to special places.
Transparency advocates have argued that spending rules about how politicians can spend money donated by PAC leaders allow corporate interests to influence lawmakers by donating to what they account for as luxury expenses. About half of Gallego’s leadership PAC contributions came from corporate sources, according to campaign finance records.
Gallego is reportedly eyeing a 2028 presidential run, with many seeing him as a progressive candidate to make a significant appeal following his 2024 Arizona Senate victory. Some still have the dog inside, but they doubt he can succeed, according to a source who spoke to Politico.
‘WALWELL’S BEST FRIEND’ IN CONGRESS IS BEING OBSERVED FOLLOWING ALLEGATIONS OF BUILDING AFTER HIS POLITICAL CAREER.
Then Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., and Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., pictured with their wives riding camels naked during a 2021 trip to Qatar sponsored by the US-Qatar Business Council. (OUR NEWS)
His longtime friendship with Swalwell, who suspended his campaign for governor of California and resigned from Congress following multiple allegations of sexual harassment, appears to be one thing that could be at risk. Additionally, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna pressed the Senate to investigate Gallego on allegations of sexual misconduct and campaign finance violations.
The senator dismissed the allegations. IRS records show he set up a hedge fund last month.
“Anyone close to Gallego will know that he is one of the most scrutinized players after his difficult 2024 campaign in which millions of dollars were spent against him,” Jacques Petit, Gallego’s communications director, told Politico. “Despite that, he did very well on the ticket. Now he’s focused on bringing Arizonans together and electing Democrats in 2026.”
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Gallego did not respond to a request for comment when reached by Fox News Digital on Monday.
