Den Senator Used Campaign Funds For Jet Setting To Disney World, Wife’s Ritzy Miami Birthday Bash And Super Bowl

Democratic Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego has used campaign funds for luxury outings with his family since launching his bid for the Senate in 2023, Politico first reported Sunday.

Gallego tapped his political action committee (PAC), the “JUNTOS PAC,” to fund trips to Disney World, Chicago and Miami, according to Politico. He also used a joint campaign account to travel to attend the Super Bowl in 2023 with disgraced former Democratic California Rep. Eric Swalwell.

The Arizona Democrat also used the PAC for $18,000 in reimbursements for child care since 2019, including $400 to his wife’s mother for babysitting his children.

After being sworn into the Senate, Gallego separately established the “JUNTOS PAC,” a leadership PAC used to raise and spend money separate from his official campaign committee. The committee raked in nearly $1.5 million as of May 31, according to Federal Elections Commission (FEC) records. These funds, which also covered his family’s travel, were used for campaign and fundraising-related travel.

The Gallegos also used the PAC to travel to Miami Beach to celebrate his wife, Sydney’s, birthday and to St. Barts for her boss’ birthday, Politico reported. The family stayed in a vacation rental in Chicago which cost nearly $1,500. A spokesperson for Gallego said the travel was “a multi-stop political and fundraising swing,” though the individual did not address the birthday celebrations, Politico reported.

The couple stayed at a Loew’s hotel on Miami Beach that cost more than $9,000.