Steyer paid – A complaint filed with California’s Fair Political Practices Commission alleges Tom Steyer’s gubernatorial campaign hired social media influencers who promoted him without clearly disclosing they were paid. The case tests a state law passed in 2023 requiring s
When new TikTok and other social posts started filling feeds with praise for Tom Steyer. some viewers treated the messages like everyday testimony from real people.. The creators, though, were not just offering opinions, a new complaint alleges.. The posts, in at least some cases, were produced with pay from Steyer’s campaign—without clear disclosure to audiences.
Two California political influencers say they spotted a pattern of newly created accounts touting Steyer with similar talking points. direct-to-camera appeals. and personal details stitched into endorsements.. They filed the complaint this week with California’s Fair Political Practices Commission. arguing the campaign failed to alert the influencers it hired that they had to disclose sponsorship when making political content.
California passed a law in 2023 requiring influencers to disclose if they have been paid to create promotional content for or against a candidate or ballot measure.. The statute is rare—there is no comparable federal requirement.. State Sen.. Tom Umberg (D-Orange). who sponsored the bill. said it took shape as “Every time there’s a new technology. you have to create legislation that requires them to disclose.”
The complaint contends that Steyer’s campaign is not doing what the law requires of campaigns under the influencer disclosure framework.. While violating the statute does not carry criminal. civil or administrative penalties. the FPPC can take influencers who break the law to court and ask a judge to force compliance.
For Steyer’s campaign, the dispute is also about how political messages travel in an online environment that rewards authenticity. Campaign spokesperson Kevin Liao said the campaign followed the rules in hiring influencers and is “confident” the complaint is “baseless.”
“Creators make their living generating content.. The campaign believes in compensating people for their time and work product and has paid creators to generate content. ” Liao said in a statement.. “Payments for creator content are disclosed in campaign finance reports. and we notify creators we directly work with of their disclosure requirements.”
In the challengers’ corner. Beatrice Gomberg and Kaitlyn Hennessy—who filed the complaint—say they noticed a surge of accounts posting nearly interchangeable Steyer content earlier this month.. Gomberg. describing the duo’s digital sleuthing. said the videos appeared to share “the exact same language” and “the same talking points.”
Some of the influencer posts reviewed in connection with the dispute include personal narratives while endorsing Steyer’s agenda. ranging from concerns about gasoline prices to environmental themes.. One creator on TikTok. using the user name Jaz R.. said. “I did not expect the most progressive governor candidate to be a billionaire. but look at the policies you guys. ” adding. “Hear me out.. I know Tom Steyer is a billionaire, but he also is for the people.”
The complaint alleges that what’s missing from those promotions is the sponsor disclosure that audiences would expect under California’s rule. The FPPC did not comment on the filing.
Beyond disclosure. the complaint and reviews described additional irregularities. including one influencer mispronouncing Steyer’s last name and other posts that did not indicate they were paid.. While some influencers have relatively small followings. a veteran California political strategist. Mike Madrid. said steady content can still shape algorithmic reach.
“What they’re trying to do is trip the algorithm,” he said. “It looks like it has a bigger audience than it really does. It’s taking the concept of astroturfing into the digital age.”
Gomberg and Hennessy say their concerns sharpened after they met at an April campaign event for Xavier Becerra. Steyer’s chief Democratic rival. who holds a narrow advantage over Steyer in several recent political polls.. The pair have supported Becerra online since then, while insisting they are not being paid.
They said they found evidence that several pro-Steyer accounts appeared to be run by influencers—mostly women—who had previously used different accounts to market other products.. One influencer’s publicly accessible online portfolio. the complaint and review described. listed a range of clients. including the Steyer campaign and a gummy product designed to boost arousal.
The pair also said they traced some activity to a vendor advertisement placed on a platform used by creators to find paid work.. According to the complaint and review. the ad initially suggested creators would be paid $10 for each post. with bonuses tied to viewership.. The advertisement later updated to say it pays $1. 000 per month and that creators would have to disclose that it is paid content.
The vendor did not respond to a request for comment.
As Gomberg and Hennessy dug further, they said some influencers promoting a governor candidate were possibly not based in California, citing connections of pro-Steyer accounts to women registered to vote in Florida and others indicating locations in Pennsylvania, Missouri and Michigan.
Some influencers who appeared to create paid content for Steyer did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
The dispute also landed in a political moment when online creator influence is increasingly visible.. The brouhaha described in the complaint is not the first time creator attention has shifted the political conversation in California.. Eric Swalwell’s gubernatorial campaign and congressional career ended after multiple women accused him of sexual assault.. In that case, a pair of influencers helped raise public concerns and connect victims with journalists who produced detailed reporting.
California’s disclosure rule places the disclosure requirement on creators. but campaigns are required to tell them they must follow it.. Gomberg and Hennessy said the issue has remained “largely under the radar” despite the law’s passage. including because the political system has not consistently enforced the disclosure obligations.
A campaign finance lawyer who requested anonymity and said they represent numerous candidates with active campaigns told The complaint’s reporters that they had not heard the problem raised “one time.”
Gomberg and Hennessy said they were pushed to act because of what undisclosed paid content can do to audience trust.
“You have people who have trust in these creators,” Hennessy said. “You have a responsibility to your audience.”
Tom Steyer FPPC complaint influencer disclosure California politics TikTok endorsements campaign finance astroturfing political advertising