Justice Department investigating Sen. Ruben Gallego's use of campaign funds, sources say
Justice Department investigating Sen. Ruben Gallego's use of campaign funds, sources say
By
Sarah N. Lynch
Senior Justice Department Reporter
Sarah N. Lynch is the senior Justice Department reporter for CBS News, based in Washington, D.C.
Read Full Bio
Sarah N. Lynch,
Gabe Kaminsky
Investigative Reporter
Gabe Kaminsky is an investigative reporter for CBS News based in Washington, D.C., covering money and influence in politics.
Read Full Bio
Gabe Kaminsky,
Jennifer Jacobs
Senior White House reporter
Jennifer Jacobs is a senior White House reporter at CBS News.
Read Full Bio
Jennifer Jacobs,
Ed O'Keefe
Senior White House and Political Correspondent
Ed O'Keefe is CBS News' senior White House and political correspondent reporting for all CBS News platforms. He's part of the team covering President Trump and covered all four years of Joe Biden's presidency. From the White House to the campaign trail, O'Keefe's reports stretch from the politics of the moment to how policy enacted in Washington affects the nation and the world.
Read Full Bio
Ed O'Keefe,
Caitlin Yilek
Politics Reporter
Caitlin Yilek is a politics reporter at CBSNews.com, based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked for the Washington Examiner and The Hill, and was a member of the 2022 Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship with the National Press Foundation.
Read Full Bio
Caitlin Yilek
Updated on: June 30, 2026 / 5:19 PM EDT / CBS News
Add CBS News on GoogleWashington — The Justice Department has launched an investigation into Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona for possible campaign finance violations, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.
The case was prompted by a whistleblower complaint in Southern California, one of the sources added.
The investigation focuses on Gallego's usage of campaign funds since 2019 for family trips, according to a source familiar with the probe. Federal Election Commission records show that Gallego has billed his campaign accounts for trips to Puerto Rico, Nantucket, Miami and other places.
Federal records also show that in 2023, a political action committee set up by Gallego and former Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell of California spent over $37,000 on tickets and meals for the Super Bowl. According to records, the committee has since been terminated.
Swalwell and Gallego's PAC held a fundraiser in connection with the 2023 Super Bowl in Glendale, Arizona, to raise money for Gallego's election, he has previously told Fox News.
Swalwell resigned from Congress in April and ended his bid for California governor after several women accused him of sexual misconduct. Swalwell has denied the allegations.
Gallego has denied campaign finance wrongdoing and has not been charged with any crime. He has not been contacted by the Justice Department about any potential or ongoing probe, according to a person familiar with the matter granted anonymity to speak frankly about the situation. Subjects of Justice Department investigations are not typically notified in the early stages and often find out about probes when an indictment is sought, records are subpoenaed or seized through a court-authorized search, or a search warrant is executed.
In a statement, a spokesman for Gallego dismissed the investigation as politically motivated. A spokesperson for the Justice Department declined to comment.
"Trump is targeting Senator Gallego while the most weaponized Department of Justice in history is turning a blind eye to Trump's unprecedented corruption," the spokesman said. "It's the least surprising news of the week that this comes immediately after the Senate Ethics Committee cleared Senator Gallego of rightwing smears pushed by the administration weeks ago."
Caleb Burns, a partner at the law firm of Wiley Rein and co-chair of its Election Law & Government Ethics practice, said an investigation into impermissible personal use of campaign funds is highly fact-specific and will depend on the extent to which there is a link to a campaign purpose.
"Members of Congress will routinely spend campaign funds to travel or go to an event because there is a clear campaign purpose associated with it, for example, a campaign fundraising event they are attending," Burns told CBS News. "The more attenuated the campaign connection, the more viable a claim that campaign funds were spent for personal use."
The investigation was first reported by Axios.
The bipartisan Ethics Committee dismissed an unrelated complaint against Gallego last Friday, his office said earlier Monday. GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida referred alleged misconduct to the bipartisan panel in April, saying the allegations were "sexual in nature" and involved campaign finance violations. Gallego denied those allegations at the time.
A letter to Gallego from the committee said it "did not find evidence that your actions violated federal law, Senate rules or related standards of conduct." Gallego's office made the letter public.
The committee also said Gallego provided "full cooperation" throughout its investigation. The panel said it considered statements offered by individuals identified in the complaint, Federal Election Commission reports, House and Senate expenditure reports and other information.
"As always, the Committee retains the authority to revisit this matter should additional facts become known to the Committee," the ethics panel said.
College football realignment refresh: July brings Pac-12 relaunch, new FBS members
College football realignment refresh: July brings Pac-12 relaunch, new FBS members
Welcome back, Pac-12. Kirby Lee / Getty Images
By Chris VanniniJuly 1, 2026 Updated 8:21 am EDTIt’s July 1, and for the fifth consecutive year, conference realignment has brought summer movement within the Football Bowl Subdivision.
What started with Texas and Oklahoma’s shocking jump from the Big 12 to the SEC in 2021 has continued to trickle down across the rest of college football, especially in the Group of 5 conferences, which are now a Group of 6. Welcome back, Pac-12.
Eleven more FBS schools officially moved Wednesday, along with some non-football-playing additions, bringing the total to 47 FBS moves since the initial Texas and Oklahoma reveal and growing the FBS to 138 teams (up from 130 in 2021). That’s more than one-third of college football’s top level.
To catch you up on this year’s moves, here’s a look at the changes effective this month.
Pac-12
Out: None
In: Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State, Texas State, Utah State, Gonzaga (non-football)
In 2024, the Pac-12 lost 10 schools to the Big Ten (four), Big 12 (four) and ACC (two), leaving just Oregon State and Washington State. What had started with USC and UCLA’s departure for the Big Ten snowballed into an existential crisis by 2024. Rather than close up shop and join the Mountain West, Oregon State and Washington State spent 2024 in a scheduling partnership with the Mountain West for football and with various leagues for other sports. A year later, the Pac-12 added five Mountain West schools. There were lawsuits, which were recently settled.
To reach the FBS-mandated minimum of eight members, the Pac-12 also added Texas State from the Sun Belt. The league will have a “flex” rematch game to close the regular season, giving everyone eight conference games. Basketball powerhouse Gonzaga is also coming over as a member in all sports, though the Zags don’t have football.
Pac-12 members as of July 1| School |
|---|
 Boise State |
 Colorado State |
 Fresno State |
 Gonzaga (non-football) |
 Oregon State |
 San Diego State |
 Texas State |
 Utah State |
 Washington State |
The Southwest Conference left a legacy and foreshadowed the future of college football
The market forces that killed the SWC are still affecting college football today.
Mountain West
Out: Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State, Utah State
In: UTEP, North Dakota State (football only), Northern Illinois (football only), UC Davis (non-football)
After nearly collapsing following the Pac-12 departures, the Mountain West struck a favorable deal with Air Force and UNLV to keep them in the fold, then added UTEP from Conference USA and brought Hawaii in as a full member (rather than a football-only one) to stabilize. The league also added Northern Illinois from the MAC as a football-only member. Then, in a late move earlier this year, the Mountain West added North Dakota State as a football-only member coming up from the Football Championship Subdivision. A recent NCAA rule change will allow the Bison to be bowl eligible this season, rather than the previous two-year wait for an FCS transition.
Mountain West members as of July 1| School |
|---|
 Air Force |
 Grand Canyon (non-football) |
 Hawaii |
 Nevada |
 New Mexico |
 North Dakota State (football only) |
 Northern Illinois (football only) |
 San Jose State |
 UC Davis (non-football) |
 UNLV |
 UTEP |
 Wyoming |
Conference USA
Out: Louisiana Tech, UTEP
In: None
CUSA is the only conference to have had a membership change in each of the last five years. This time, UTEP took the Mountain West offer, which made sense geographically. Louisiana Tech then announced last year it would join its fellow Louisiana G6 schools in the Sun Belt. That also led to a lawsuit, which was similarly settled in time for the Bulldogs to move this offseason.
Conference USA members as of July 1| School |
|---|
 Delaware |
 FIU |
 Jacksonville State |
 Kennesaw State |
 Liberty |
 Middle Tennessee |
 Missouri State |
 New Mexico State |
 Sam Houston |
 Western Kentucky |
Sun Belt
Out: Texas State
In: Louisiana Tech
The Sun Belt saw Texas State leave for the Pac-12 but remains a 14-team league after adding Louisiana Tech. The conference has leaned into its tight geographic footprint, and these moves make its members even closer.
Sun Belt members as of July 1| School |
|---|
 Appalachian State |
 Arkansas State |
 Coastal Carolina |
 Georgia Southern |
 Georgia State |
 Louisiana |
 Louisiana-Monroe |
 Louisiana Tech |
 James Madison |
 Old Dominion |
 Marshall |
 South Alabama |
 Southern Miss |
 Troy |
Who is the USMNT of college football? Debating Texas A&M, Indiana, UNC and more
Could the United States be the Indiana of the World Cup? At least one of our writers thinks so.
MAC
Out: Northern Illinois
In: Sacramento State
Northern Illinois had been the MAC’s westernmost program. Now the Huskies are leaving the conference for the second time and will be replaced by a team out in California for football. The Hornets had been trying to move up from the FCS in recent years but didn’t have an FBS conference home. North Dakota State’s move, complete with a sizable payment to the Mountain West, created the blueprint for Sac State to do the same, and the MAC was willing to take it.
MAC members as of July 1| School |
|---|
 Akron |
 Ball State |
 Bowling Green |
 Buffalo |
 Central Michigan |
 Eastern Michigan |
 Kent State |
 Miami (Ohio) |
 Ohio |
 Sacramento State |
 Toledo |
 UMass |
Connections: Sports Edition
Spot the pattern. Connect the terms
Find the hidden link between sports terms
Tagged To: College FootballCollege SportsSports BusinessDSA’s third major primary win deepens Democrats’ fight over the party’s future
Democratic PartyDSA’s third major primary win deepens Democrats’ fight over the party’s future
The far left is further emboldened as it takes on the establishment in a battle for the future of the Democratic Party
By
Paul Steinhauser Fox News
Published
July 1, 2026 4:00am EDT close 
Video Democratic socialists challenge incumbents in key Colorado primary races
Fox News senior correspondent Alicia Acuna reports on the progressive push in key Colorado races on 'Special Report.'
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) are taking their political playbook nationwide.
One week after DSA-aligned candidates scored ballot-box victories over establishment-backed contenders in two congressional primaries in New York City that grabbed outsized national attention, the group scored another major upset in a deep-blue U.S. House district in Denver, Colorado.
Democratic Rep. Diana DeGette, who was first elected to Congress in 1996 and took office in 1997, was defeated by DSA-backed Melat Kiros, a first-time candidate and former attorney who is 29 years old.
Kiros’ victory comes a week after Darializa Avila Chevalier, a 32-year-old progressive community organizer in New York City, ousted incumbent Democratic Rep. Adriano Espaillat, chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and state Assembly Member Claire Valdez, another DSA-aligned contender, won a congressional primary to succeed retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez.
VICTORIES BY MAMDANI-BACKED CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES SPOTLIGHTS GROWING RIFT IN DEMOCRATIC PARTY
Democratic congressional candidate Melat Kiros participated in a League of Women Voters Congressional District 1 candidate forum at Montview Presbyterian Church on May 28, 2026, in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
The victories by Chevalier and Valdez, who were backed by socialist New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, coupled with the win this week by Kiros, are further emboldening the progressive left as it takes on the center-left establishment in a high-stakes battle for the future of the Democratic Party.
Hasan Piker, the controversial, far-left streamer, at the Kiros primary night event in Denver, told Fox News, "I think progressive politics, left populism, a politics that centers the needs of the working class, can work in every district, in every state. That's why I kept saying over and over again, it's coming to a city near you."
The latest DSA primary victory came in Colorado's 1st Congressional District, a Democrat-dominated seat anchored in Denver that then-Vice President Kamala Harris carried by nearly 56 points in the 2024 election.
"Another Democratic Socialist is going to Congress!," the DSA touted in a social media post. "Congresswoman Kiros will take the fight for a better world to D.C: to Abolish ICE, free Palestine, and win Universal Childcare and Medicare for All."
Kiros, who lost her job as a lawyer in New York after writing an essay critical of Israel, was also supported by Justice Democrats, the nearly decade-old political group known for heavily supporting "Squad" members Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib as they toppled entrenched incumbents in their initial elections to Congress.
DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB
From left, Wanda James, Diana DeGette and Melat Kiros participate in a League of Women Voters Congressional District 1 candidate forum at Montview Presbyterian Church on May 28, 2026, in Denver, Colorado (Photo by RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
University of Colorado regent Wanda James, who jumped into the Democratic congressional primary in April and was described as a spoiler, finished third, in single digits.
Progressives also scored an impressive victory in the neighboring 8th Congressional District, a crucial swing seat which stretches along the I-25 corridor north of Denver.
State Rep. Manny Rutinel tallied a convincing double-digit victory over former state Rep. Shannon Bird, a more moderate candidate. Rutinel will now take on Republican Rep. Gabe Evans, who flipped the seat in the 2024 cycle.
The race is considered one of two or three dozen that will determine if the GOP holds onto its razor-thin House majority in the midterms.
Immigration was a top issue in the Democratic primary in a district where roughly 40% of the population is Latino. Rutinel criticized Bird for a vote she cast last year opposing a measure limiting cooperation between local and state law enforcement and ICE. And Rutinel was boosted by big spending from allies, including prominent Latino groups.
State Rep. Manny Rutinel won the Democratic primary in Colorado's 8th Congressional District. (Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)
While Rutinel has tempered his previous support for top progressive issues, including Medicare for All and opposition to fracking, Republicans viewed him as the easier general election challenger than Bird. During the primary campaign, the right spotlighted pictures of him rallying alongside Mamdani.
"Democrats have chosen a far-left, radical socialist, Mamdani-wanna-be extremist — someone who supports eliminating oil and gas, defunding law enforcement, calling farmers and ranchers horrific, and threatening the industries that power our economy," Evans charged in a statement.
Another primary showdown highlighting the split between progressives and moderates, as well as the party's generational divide, was the Senate nomination battle between incumbent Sen. John Hickenlooper, 74, and former state Sen. Julie Gonzales, a 43-year-old progressive.
Hickenlooper, a former Denver mayor and two-term governor, saw his once-large advantage over Gonzales, a one-time DSA member, narrow in the weeks ahead of the primary.
Hickenlooper prevailed and will now be the clear favorite in the general election against Republican state Sen. Mark Baisley, who was unopposed in his primary.
Sen. John Hickenlooper of Colorado won renomination in Tuesday's Democratic Senate primary. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
But Gonzales saw a silver lining in defeat, writing in a statement, "My heart is full, knowing that we've put the Democratic establishment on notice: keep taking folks like us for granted at your own peril."
Meanwhile, state Attorney General Phil Weiser topped U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet in the expensive and combustible Democratic gubernatorial primary.
Weiser, who ran to Bennet’s left on certain issues, closed the gap with the senator as he spotlighted his efforts to take on President Donald Trump, including filing or joining dozens of lawsuits against the Trump administration as attorney general.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser defeated U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. (Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)
Longtime Democratic strategist Joe Caiazzo, a veteran of progressive champion Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns, told Fox News Digital that "it is undeniable that progressives have built a coalition and have a message that can serve to buoy a candidate when they are an acceptable alternative to the status quo."
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
While plenty of mainstream Democrats have racked up primary victories in recent weeks, it is the far-left that's grabbing the media spotlight. And that's giving Republicans more ammunition as they portray all Democrats as radicals.
"The socialist takeover of the Democrat Party is no longer confined to deep-blue strongholds. The radicals are taking over battleground districts, putting must-win seats out of reach for Democrats and sinking their chances of flipping the House," NRCC Spokesman Mike Marinella said as he pointed to Rutinel's victory.
Fox News' Olivia Palombo and Matthew Donnell contributed to this report
Paul Steinhauser covers the national campaign trail from coast to coast for Fox News
