Newsom PAC bought thousands of memoir copies about his hardships, juicing sales

When asked about the book's ranking on the best seller list, a New York Times spokesperson explained the outlet places a dagger symbol on the list to indicate when a book's ranking has been influenced by a bulk purchase.

"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. That's what we did with the Newsom book," Nicole Taylor, spokesperson for The Times, said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

A spokesperson for Newsom told Fox News Digital later on Friday evening, "Governor Newsom did not do a 'bulk buy' of $1.5M worth of books to boost sales."

"The book sales through his email list were individual sales done through a new, innovative approach that allows his list to receive copies of the book early. The campaign viewed the book offer as a major list-building and engagement opportunity - one of the largest of any campaign in the country."

The spokesperson said the books were sold at cost through a vendor and that Newsom did not receive royalties on copies distributed through the program.

"Supporters were invited to give whatever amount they could afford and still receive a copy of the book. The goal was participation and engagement, not fundraising," the spokesperson continued. "The campaign's list provided an opportunity for supporters to buy the book through a vendor consistently used by other authors. Each book was sold and sent out through the vendor, similar to buying from Amazon or Barnes and Noble. In total, more than 67,000 individual sales were made through the campaign's offers." 

Book promotion is common among politicians, but Newsom's PAC spending outpaces similar political committee purchases. The Republican National Committee, for example, spent about $100,000 in 2019 purchasing Donald Trump Jr.'s book, the New York Times noted in its report.  

Newsom's memoir is focused on the challenges he faced in his upbringing, addressing his battle with dyslexia and having divorced parents, as well as his political career. 

Newsom's book tour, which included visiting cities across the nation, drew criticism from conservatives for the Democrat governor allegedly putting himself over leading California. 

Social media commenters have not shied away from mocking Newsom over the book sales, including Republican California gubernatorial candidate and former Fox News host Steve Hilton. 

Newsom is considered a top potential 2028 presidential candidate for the Democrat Party, though he has not confirmed whether he will officially throw his hat in the ring.