Fake Tweet pits Adam Gray against Josh Harder, although it still could happen
Whoah! Slow down, everybody.
Everybody caring about Assemblyman Adam Gray’s political future, that is. Especially as it relates to Congressman Josh Harder, and whether the two might actually run against each other.
A realistic-looking Tweet this morning proclaiming that Gray will challenge Harder for the newly created District 13 House seat immediately was picked up and retweeted by various political observers salivating to see a bare-knuckles fight between two respected, moderate Democrats.
But it’s fake.
“This (@AdamGray2022) is not an Adam Gray (Twitter) account,” said Mike Lynch, a spokesman for Gray’s campaign. “It’s not an Adam Gray post and it was not authorized by Adam Gray, permitted or anything by Adam Gray. He is looking at the (redrawn) district lines and talking to people since the lines were approved, but he has not made any decision regarding the election.”
A bit later, Gray himself Tweeted from his true account, @AdamGrayCA, the following: “It has come to my attention that someone created a fake twitter account in my name & likeness. It does not belong to me & has been reported.” And the phony post quickly was taken down.
Gray’s intentions have been an open question since redistricting produced radically different boundaries for state and congressional districts in the Central Valley, including Stanislaus and Merced counties, Gray’s home turf.
Harder’s early announcement that he will seek the District 13 seat representing west Stanislaus County, Merced and Madera counties and part of Fresno County leaves Gray nowhere to run if Gray wants to move up to Congress. But only about a third of that district lies in Harder’s current boundaries, while Gray has represented more than half of what will be the 13th during his nine years in the California Assembly.
So many have been waiting anxiously for Gray to tip his hand. Which explains why several seized on the bogus announcement without bothering to check it out.
Double-check before retweeting
Lynch said Gray continues to weigh his options.
The most likely is Assembly District 27, newly drawn to envelop Merced County and parts of Madera and Fresno counties. But term limits will keep him from serving there longer than one more two-year term.
I don’t have an answer yet to the question everyone’s asking: Who’s the troll? And why did they do this?
We might expect this kind of thing to happen more as election season gets under way, heading toward the all-important June primary with state Assembly and Senate seats, as well as the House, on the ballot. People should double-check everything before sharing on social media.
And stay tuned, in case we can find out who went to such lengths to create such a stir, complete with a nice photo of Gray with his mother, apparently lifted from a Facebook tribute posted on Mother’s Day by Gray. The real one.
This story was originally published January 5, 2022 at 11:45 AM.
