Overview
- Federal campaign filings made public Wednesday show Newsom’s Campaign for Democracy PAC paid $1,561,875 to Porchlight Book Company for “books at cost,” the committee’s largest expense of early 2026.
- The PAC order covered roughly 67,000 copies, which is about two-thirds of the book’s approximately 97,400 print sales since its Feb. 24 release.
- The memoir appeared on The New York Times best-seller list with a dagger symbol, which the Times uses to flag rankings influenced by bulk purchases.
- Newsom began the offer in November by telling supporters that any donation would earn a copy, pitching it after voters approved Proposition 50 in California.
- Spokesman Nathan Click said donations from the promotion exceeded costs and said Newsom earns no royalties on PAC copies, while critics note the scale eclipses past legal promotions such as Kamala Harris’s PAC paying about $97,524 for her memoir.