Will Gov. Newsom Get Indicted?
Sep 17, 2026
California Gov. Newsom and his wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom are under a grand-jury criminal investigation by U.S. Attorney Michael D. Anderson for the Eastern District of California, regarding $354.7 million in nonprofit donations from 1,327 donors, he collected since being Lt. Gov. in 2011.
Gov. Newsom on June 15th announced that the DOJ was investigating him and his wife, and that FBI agents had contacted more than a dozen friends, former employees, businesses, and nonprofits. Newsom acknowledged that the couple were being targeted, because investigative questioning cited specific transactions they had participated in.
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Newsom’s influencer network initially claimed that the investigation only involved Newsom’s then-chief of staff Dana Williamson and lobbyist Greg Campbell, in a small scheme that siphoned $225,000 from the dormant campaign account of former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra.
U.S. Attorney’s Office on May 14th only stated: “California Political Consultant and Former Public Official Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Fraud, Filing a False Tax Return, and Making False Statements.”
But the scheme’s beneficiary was former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra’s top prosecutor Sean McCluskie from 2017-2021, who took the Chief of Staff job in Washington DC when Bacerra became U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary. Due the Biden administration COVID-19 response, HHS spent $7 trillion from 2021-2025.
Bacerra claims to have no knowledge of the $225,000 routed through three consulting firms to disguise paying McCluskie’s wife for a no-show communications job. But the scam was designed to make up for the pay cut McCluskie had to take to follow Becerra to DC as number 2 at HHS.
McCluskie agreed to plead guilty to a felony, repay the $225,000, and cooperate with U.S. prosecutors. What was not mentioned was that despite McCluskie’s wife actually pocketing the cash, she was not charged with a felony that could have carried a 20-year prison term.
Also not charged was whistleblower Alexis Podesta, who went to the Biden administration FBI and agreed to wear a wire from early 2022 to late 2025.
Newsom at the time was angling to make an insurgent challenge in the 2024 Democrat primaries. It has been rumored that the Biden DOJ used Podesta to target all the California players in Gov. Newsom’s “orbit, their nonprofits, and communications with them.”
There has not been public release of the full catalog of every conversation Podesta recorded. But dozens of Sacramento and D.C. lobbyists who never dealt with Williamson or McCluskie have been noticed that their calls were intercepted.
The NY Post reported on June 16th that Gov. Newsom separately agreed to pay a $31,500 ethics fine after California’s Fair Political Practices Commission’s watchdogs found he failed to timely disclose $5.5 million “behested payments” from 36 corporations, foundations, and other donors for Los Angeles wildfire relief.
According to the FPPC, “behested payments” are subject to reporting because they are made at the request of an elected official “for a legislative, governmental, or charitable purpose.”
The September 2026 subpoenas cover the paper trail associated with the $354.7 million in behested donations from the 1,327 donors including:
1 Facebook / Meta = $32 million;
2 Blue Shield of California and affiliates = $21 million;
3 Sierra Health Foundation + Center for Health Program Management $14.9 million;
4 Kaiser Foundation = $9.75 million
Subpoenas were also issue regarding:
a) $7.5 million in donations Newsom directed to the California State Protocol Foundation — the nonprofit that pays for Newsom’s international travel with private donations rather than state funds;
b) Newsom donor and fundraising lists;c) The governor’s overseas travel and events;d) Money used for the governor’s residence, living costs, or personal expenses;e) Communications involving Newsom and current/former aides, including protocol chief Rebecca Prowda (wife of San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie), Steve Kawa, Jim DeBoo, Jason Elliott, and campaign counsel Tom Willis;f) Communications with Jennifer Siebel Newsom;
g) Records tied to California Partners Project, the gender-equity nonprofit she co-founded (Willis sits on that board; Newsom has directed more than $5 million in behested donations to it since 2020);
Separate subpoenas involving IRS agents for Jennifer Siebel Newsom’s taxes and nonprofits — Representation Project, California Partners Project, and her production company Girls Club Entertainment.
Behested donations also went to Mrs. Newsom’s nonprofit. California Partners Project (co-founded by Jennifer Siebel Newsom, unpaid) received up to $5.1 million in Gov. Newsom behested payments since 2020 — more than 80% of the organization’s reported revenue.
Top California Partners Project donors:
Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria made five annual donations of about $450,000 from 2022–2026). As the largest CPP donor, Tribe Chairman, Greg Sarris was appointed to the UC Board of Regents; Newsom’s office also opposed a rival Koi Nation casino.
Lisa Stone Pritzker Family Foundation — $572,000
San Manuel Band of Mission Indians — part of a combined $1.9 million tribal donation. A tribal member was later appointed to the Native American Heritage Commission
Silicon Valley Bank — $100,000
New Venture Fund — $100,000
Blue Shield of California Foundation — $50,000
Protocol Foundation:
Hewlett Foundation $300,000 for a China climate change trip.
Whistleblowers have come forward to highlight the hypocrisy that just months after COVID related behested gifts, Blue Shield received a no-bid vaccine-distribution contract (up to $15 million) and Kaiser later received a no-bid Medi-Cal management contract. Newsom’s office called the policy decisions independent of the donations.
No charges have been file against Gov. Newsom or his wife, but it is expected that the next visible step could be either a personal subpoena, a search warrant, or a charging decision after the grand jury reviews the Protocol Foundation and Partners Project records.
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