Gavin Newsom spends $1.5 million from his PAC on 67,000 copies of his new book to inflate sales numbers

Gavin Newsom's 'bestselling' book.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has a big buyer to thank for what amounts to two-thirds of the sales of his new book that was released in February: his own political action committee, which shelled out more than $1.5 million to buy 67,000 copies.

Newsom's book, Young Man in a Hurry: A Memoir of Discovery, has sold 97,400 copies as of mid-April, according to The New York Times. Of those, 67,000 were purchased by his political action committee, the Campaign for Democracy Committee, and then sent to supporters who donated to the PAC. In November, the Times reported, the committee emailed the donors on its list saying if they made a donation of any amount, the PAC would send a copy of the book.

A Newsom spokesperson told the Times the stunt had been successful because it "more than paid for itself" and landed the book on The New York Times bestseller list. However, the manner in which the books were sold raised a red flag with the bestseller list, which monitors for irregularities and inflated sales. Penguin Random House touts the book as "a New York Times bestseller."

“When The Times has reason to believe that sales of a book include a mix of organic and bulk sales, the book’s best-seller ranking is accompanied by a dagger," Danielle Rhoades Ha, a spokesperson for the Times said. "That’s what we did with the Newsom book.”

Newsom was roundly criticized on social media by many who said he used the stunt to make the book appear to the public more popular than it actually is.

The $1,561,875 the PAC spent to buy and ship the books to donors is its largest cost of the first quarter of the year. Although he often demurs, Newsom is clearly exploring a 2028 run for president. Recent polling shows him ranking first or second among Democrats, typically behind Kamala Harris who last week indicated she's thinking about another run for the White House in 2028 after losing to Trump in 2024.