The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) labeled Arizona U.S. Representative Ruben Gallego (D-AZ-03) a “deadbeat dad” in a commercial released less than one month after a court ordered some of his divorce records unsealed.
NRSC branded Ruben Gallego a “deadbeat dad” over his 2017 divorce from Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego. The couple announced their split just days before Christmas in 2016 when Kate Gallego was nine months pregnant with their son.
The NRSC ad described parenthood as among “life’s great joys,” but notes, “Ruben Gallego walked out on his family, abandoning his newborn son, leaving his wife, and then marrying a D.C. lobbyist.” Ruben Gallego is now married to Sydney Barron Gallego, the director of Government Advocacy at the National Association of Realtors.
A female narrator then charged, “If deadbeat dad Ruben Gallego would abandon his own family, he won’t be there for Arizonans when it matters most.”
U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake, who is likely to oppose Ruben Gallego in November, shared the ad on the social media platform X.
“Arizona won’t elect Deadbeat Dad [Ruben Gallego] to the United States Senate,” wrote Lake.
🚨 New Ad 🚨
Arizona won't elect Deadbeat Dad @RubenGallego to the United States Senate.
Watch & SHARE
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) April 18, 2024
The NRSC’s decision to focus on the failed marriage of Ruben and Kate Gallego comes after The Washington Free Beacon reported that an Arizona judge agreed the couple’s divorce record should not remain completely sealed.
According to the outlet, Ruben Gallego was given 15 days to propose specific redactions from the divorce records prior to their full release, with The Free Beacon reporting the judge “did not believe that much if any” of the divorce records “should remain private.”
Despite the divorce, Kate Gallego endorsed her ex-husband’s campaign for U.S. Senate last December. In addition to her role as mayor of Phoenix, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg recently appointed her to an advisory role in January.
After the NRSC released a similar ad last November, Ruben Gallego called it “a baseless, deeply personal” attack.
NRSC spokesman Tate Mitchell stated of the ad, “Arizona women can’t trust a man who divorced his wife when she was weeks away from having their child.”
NRSC Chair Steve Daines endorsed Lake in February. Senate Republican Conference Chair John Barrasso was similarly among the early endorsements she received last October.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Ruben Gallego” by NRSC.
