Tom Steyer’s campaign pays TikTokers to like him? That’s sorta creepy | Opinion
Paying social media influencers to give candidates glowing reviews — as if they were a bag of potato chips or a new brand of lip liner — is a whole new level of cringe.
Even worse, some content creators hired by the Tom Steyer gubernatorial campaign neglected to disclose that they were paid for their work, as required by California’s Fair Political Practices Commission.
That raises questions: Do these influencers even know or care about Steyer? Or are they just paid actors?
The Steyer campaign has denied violating any rules, according to Sacramento Bee journalist Lia Russell, who first broke the story about Steyer’s paid influencers.
“Payments for creator content are disclosed in campaign finance reports, and we notify creators we directly work with of their disclosure requirements,” campaign spokesperson Kevin Liao said in a statement.
The FPPC confirmed that it is investigating a complaint that Isaiah “Zay Dante” Washington posted an interview with Steyer on TikTok and other social media outlets and failed to disclose that he had been paid $10,000 for his content. The video has since been deleted.
Shilling for the price of a burrito bowl
Russell reported that some influencers have been offered as little as $10 per video — another embarrassment for the billionaire candidate trying to convince working-class voters that he is in their corner. (The offer has since been upped to $1,000 per month.)
Now Steyer is being blasted on social media as a mega-rich cheapskate.
“Are you all really shilling for a video for the price of burrito bowl, because we need to talk about the math here,” TikToker Caffeinatedtejal said with faux, wide-eyed wonder. “If you’re going to sell your soul, at least check the market rate.”
It’s smart to reach out to younger voters on social, but paying influencers who normally focus on topics like fashion and entertainment and workouts is not the way to build credibility.
Nor is “coaching” them on what to say, as this memo from the Steyer campaign does.
“This content should still be related to policies he supports, for instance, videos about abolishing ICE, taxing the rich, AI regulation, climate change, free universal education, ending corporate influence in politics, etc. This will help your content reach more audiences and build audience trust,” it says.
Steyer in third place, neck-and-neck with Steve Hilton
This comes at a bad time for Steyer, who has jumped into third place, jut behind Republican Steve Hilton, with Xavier Becerra in the lead, according to a recent Emerson College poll.
Becerra has been dealing with his own setbacks. On Thursday, a top former aide, Dana Williamson, pleaded guilty to helping steal funds from a dormant campaign account belonging to Becerra.
While he has been identified as the victim in the case, there are lingering questions about what Becerra knew — or should have known.
There was also his recent run-in with a KTLA news reporter.
“By the way, this is a profile piece, this is not a gotcha piece, right?” he asked her at the start of the interview.
“Well, look, I think these questions are fair,” reporter Annie Rose Ramos responded. “It’s in order to learn about you as a candidate.”
“So long it’s about the profile,” Becerra shot back in an all-too-obvious effort to control the interview.
Unlike Katie Porter — whose tense exchange with CBS reporter Julie Watts is still being rehashed six months later — Becerra seems to have been already forgiven for his misstep.
Whether Steyer can hang on without losing momentum in this fast-developing race will soon be seen.
He’s already had to convince voters that he’s not just another billionaire trying to buy a governorship. Now he’s accused of throwing money at young influencers so they’ll pretend to like him?
Probably wise to pull all those spots. Maybe reach out to some young politicos instead.
Still, don’t count Steyer out just yet.
In this crazy governors race, just about anything can happen.
This story was originally published May 16, 2026 at 10:51 AM with the headline "Tom Steyer’s campaign pays TikTokers to like him? That’s sorta creepy | Opinion."
