Gov. Gavin Newsom discovered a novel strategy to enhance each his political conflict chest and his memoir gross sales, by tying the 2 collectively.
The Democrat provided supporters a replica of his e book, “Younger Man in a Hurry: A Memoir of Discovery,” in alternate for donations of any measurement to his political motion committee.
The pitch labored: roughly 67,000 folks chipped in, in accordance for about two-thirds of the memoir’s whole print gross sales, the New York Instances reported.
New federal filings launched Wednesday present Newsom’s PAC, Marketing campaign for Democracy, shelled out $1,561,875 to buy and distribute these books by the promotion.
The funds went to Porchlight E book Firm and had been labeled as “books at value,” marking the committee’s largest expense within the first quarter of 2026.
Regardless of the hefty outlay, Newsom’s staff insists the technique paid off.
“We had been thrilled with the response,” spokesman Nathan Click on advised the NY Instances. “Our objective was to deepen the connection between him and the hundreds of thousands of parents who’ve already expressed assist for Governor Newsom’s work. And because it seems, the tactic greater than paid for itself.”
In keeping with information from Circana BookScan, the governor’s memoir has offered over 97,000 print copies since its launch. Of these, the practically 70,000 distributed by the PAC promotion made up a big majority.
”It’s a superb e book. Very private. Not your regular political e book in any respect,” Newsom wrote in a single Jan. 31 e-mail hawking free copies of the memoir in alternate for donations.
Earlier this yr, Newsom’s staff touted sturdy gross sales, claiming greater than 91,000 copies had been bought by “natural, in-person and on-line, non-bulk purchases,” serving to propel the e book onto bestseller lists shortly after launch.
The fundraising push started in November, when Newsom emailed supporters urging them to donate after California voters accepted Proposition 50, a redistricting measure he backed that would assist Democrats achieve as much as 5 extra Home seats.
“We simply spent a bunch of cash on passing Prop 50,” he wrote on the time, “so now I have to refill that coffers at my Marketing campaign for Democracy for the fights forward — together with serving to different states move redistricting to cease Trump from rigging the following election.”
The provide resurfaced in January, usually buried within the wonderful print of extra fundraising emails.
Different Democrats have tried comparable ways.
A PAC tied to former Vice President Kamala Harris paid $97,524 to Porchlight in January after providing her personal memoir to donors, although her promotion got here months after the e book had already turn into a bestseller, in accordance with the NY Instances.
Nonetheless, Newsom’s multimillion-dollar book-buying push underscores how trendy campaigns are mixing publishing and politics, turning page-turners into fundraising machines.
