Kari Lake’s opponent who dumped his pregnant wife may soon have his dirty laundry exposed
Rep. Ruben Gallego (D) is competing with Kari Lake for a U.S. Senate seat in Arizona. While recent polls
show Gallego leading Lake by upward of 13 points, forthcoming revelations about the Democrat’s murky past might help close the gap and deny him a future in the Senate.
The Washington Free Beacon
filed a motion in January to unseal Gallego’s 2017 divorce records, which were hidden from the public since he dumped his wife, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego, when she was nine months pregnant.
The Arizona Supreme Court
ruled Wednesday — days after Lake wrote, “Arizona deserves to know what he’s hiding” — that the Democrat and his ex-wife can no longer keep their divorce records under wraps, which are now expected to come out before week’s end.
The Free Beacon
noted at the outset that something was unusual about the relatively heightened secrecy around the dissolution of Gallego’s marriage:
Though both Ruben and Kate Gallego are public figures, public records and basic information on the internet about the circumstances of the divorce are scant, likely because the Gallegos or their allies have buried them. In Arizona, as in most states, court records—including those related to divorces—are generally accessible to the public. But in the Gallegos’ case, the
entire docket is under seal, something incredibly unusual in a state where the sealing of information, if it happens at all, is typically limited to specific sensitive information.
The Free Beacon suggested further that the records were publicly relevant because both Gallegos held public office and Rep. Gallego had incorporated the divorce into his political backstory.
There was also the matter of
where the couple filed for divorce.
While Arizona law requires that citizens file for divorce in that county where they presently live, the Free Beacon noted that the Gallegos lived in Maricopa County when they filed for divorce in Yavapai County.
The Gallegos resisted the push for transparency and fought to keep the records sealed.
‘Congressman Gallego is not entitled to special privileges to secrecy in court records.’
The Yavapai County Superior Court agreed that the records should be unsealed but permitted the congressman an opportunity to propose redactions.
Superior Court Judge John Napper later rejected a number of Gallego’s proposed redactions on July 3 and ordered that a version of the record be filed publicly.
Gallego, who
told a fellow lawmaker “F*** your prayers” in 2022, appealed, claiming he and his ex-wife were seeking to protect their minor child. They secured a stay on July 30 from the state Court of Appeals. However, on Tuesday, the appellate court subsequently ordered that this stay be lifted on Oct. 17, prompting Gallego to seek the intervention of Arizona’s Supreme Court.
The couple’s lawyers suggested in their Tuesday
motion to stay the appellate court’s decision that the unsealing of the records would irreparably harm their privacy and safety rights.
According to the Tucson Star, the Free Beacon countered with a response stressing the Gallegos failed to meet the legal requirements to block the release of the file.
“That process will mean the media and the electorate get nothing from these presumptively public records until after all votes are cast,”
wrote Michael Edney, attorney for the Free Beacon. “That harm to the media and voters is time-sensitive and irreparable, starting a week ago with the commencement of early voting, a problem that will deepen each day until Nov. 5.”
Edney added, “Congressman Gallego is not entitled to special privileges to secrecy in court records not afforded to other Arizona Citizens. If anything, the press and public have a heightened First Amendment interest in court records regarding public officials.”
The Arizona Supreme Court unanimously rejected the couple’s bid late Wednesday.
“The court concludes that the Gallegos have not established a strong likelihood of success on the merit,” wrote Justice Clint Bolick. “Nor have they established irreparable harm with any degree of specificity if the stay is not granted.”
Ahead of the unsealing, Rep. Gallego has been
urging voters to turn in early ballots.
Early voting began in Arizona on Oct. 9.
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