Fake Politicians Steyer and Becerra Use Fake Social Media Accounts to Boost Campaigns – RedState
There are about 10 days until California’s June 2 primary, and a recent Emerson College/Insider California Politics poll shows the race for California governor is tightening. Former Health and Human Services Secretary and Democratic candidate Xavier Becerra took the lead, leading the pack with 19 percent. Republican candidate and former Fox News host Steve Hilton and billionaire former hedge fund manager and Democratic candidate Tom Steyer are tied at 17 percent. Republican candidate Sheriff Chad Bianco is at 11 percent, while former congresswoman and Democratic candidate Katie Porter and San Jose Mayor and Democratic candidate Matt Mahan are languishing down. Most telling is that 12 percent of voters are still undecided.
As RedState reported, Becerra saw a big surge only after former Congressman Eric Swalwell was unceremoniously kicked out of the race. Becerra rose from fifth place to the top of the poll. Steyer did everything he could to change that calculus, using social media attacks to try to take down Becerra in order to move into the Top 2 in the California jungle primary.
Both candidates are equally terrible, but it’s Becerra who is the Democratic Party’s nominee; thus, all the support, money and union love flowed in his direction. Steyer is self-funded, so he has no worries when it comes to financing. Which means the two men engaged in a social media flame war to undermine each other, with varying degrees of success.
New accusations have surfaced that Becerra and Steyer funded fake social media accounts to boost their campaigns.
Shock.
Fake social media accounts mysteriously boost Becerra’s campaign, report says https://t.co/3dsZWYJea0 pic.twitter.com/tqPtXiPBYc
– New York Post (@nypost) May 22, 2026
California Democratic gubernatorial candidates Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer are both accused of improperly paying social media influencers to boost their bids — but another front in the social media war between the two over fake accounts is also underway, according to a report.
More than 3,000 fake accounts on Instagram, It is used by clients including NATO and the US State Department, its website says.
It’s a technology powerful enough to create the illusion of consensus. These Astroturf accounts are as fraudulent as Spencer Pratt’s mayoral campaign is authentically popular. We all know Becerra: from California Congressman to California AG to Secretary of HHS, he has been a complete idiot and blatantly incompetent. Steyer comes out milquetoast, but reveals himself to be an undercover Machiavelli. As RedState reported, Katie Porter accused Steyer of leaking the videos of Porter abusing her employee during a Zoom call. All of this is consistent with the politics of California Democrats: They are too busy jockeying for position and overachieving to care one bit about what Californians actually want or need.
The analysis, which was shared with The Post, alleges a “coordinated, cross-platform effort to amplify negative narratives and increase visibility online” — although it notably draws no conclusions about who may control the accounts and why.
Activity from the alleged fake accounts generated more than 1 million views and approximately 42,000 engagements, according to the report.
The accounts focused on pro-Becerra posts that attempted to create a perception of popular support, according to the report. Many have focused on criticism of Steyer, such as his payment to influencer Carlos Eduardo Espina.
Of course, Steyer turns the knife, a classic case of pot calling the kettle black.
Meta gave $950,000 to get you elected, then literally the next day laid off 10% of its workforce. https://t.co/H3zInDqYGD
-Tom Steyer (@TomSteyer) May 22, 2026
Learn more: Xavier Becerra Praised Scientology in Video, Then Used Government Power Against Catholic Groups
Infighting Intensifies as Katie Porter Drops Big Claims Against Main Opponents
But Steyer has his own problems with social media influence.
A political influencer has filed a lawsuit against Tom Steyer’s campaign for governor, claiming the committee failed to inform her of disclosure requirements, as required by law, when she was paid to meet with Steyer in March and later produced social media content from the meeting.
Additionally, she said Steyer’s campaign falsely accused her of posting paid content in support of Steyer’s primary Democratic rival, Xavier Becerra, and failing to disclose it in a lawsuit filed by the billionaire’s campaign this week.
Maggie Reed, who regularly posts satirical takes on politics to about half a million followers on Instagram and TiKTok under the username mermaidmamamaggie, said she was in fact paid by Steyer’s campaign and signed an agreement that prohibited her from disclosing the payment.
She posted, then deleted, a video of her meeting with Steyer in March.
“Put simply: The Committee paid for political content, structured it to resemble the organic opinion of an ordinary creator, and used a nondisclosure agreement to prevent the public from learning the truth,” says the complaint filed Thursday with California’s Fair Political Practices Commission.
They love their NDAs. The State of California is already circling the sewers, waiting for someone to pull the plug. If Becerra or Steyer enter the Top 2 and manage to win the overall, expect that to happen. They will ensure that everything continues as usual: the same corrupted device, with a different puppet pulling the levers.
Editor’s note: The 2026 midterm elections will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both houses of Congress.
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