Gallego Accused of Violating Stock Act

Under the STOCK Act, members of Congress must disclose their stock transactions and other financial holdings. This legislation mandates that members report any stock transaction over $1,000 within 30 days and no later than 45 days after the transaction. Additionally, members must file annual financial disclosure reports detailing their assets, income, and liabilities. According to Capital Trades, Gallego purchased shares of NameCoach Inc. on June 14, 2022, but failed to report until Aug 14, 2024, 791 days after its purchase. Such disclosures help ensure transparency and prevent conflicts of interest or insider trading by allowing public access to information on elected officials’ financial activities. Kari Lake, who is running against Gallego for Kyrsten Sinema’s senate seat, posted about it on X yesterday.

Ruben Gallego just violated the Stock Act. He refused to disclose his stock trades for 300 DAYS beyond the deadline.

Ruben Gallego thinks he’s above the law.

Arizonans will hold him accountable in November. https://t.co/06QYtvAZhQ

— Kari Lake (@KariLake) August 15, 2024

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, members of Congress have made over 1,500 controversial stock trades, raising significant ethical concerns about potential conflicts of interest and insider trading. The alleged offenses included privileged access to non-public information to potentially benefit financially during a national crisis. In response, the ETHICS Act (Ending Trading and Holdings in Congressional Stocks Act) is making its way through Congress. But until then, Congressmen can continue to flaunt the rules.

Ruben Gallego previously faced FEC fines for failing to disclose significant campaign expenditures. In 2015, Gallego’s campaign committee was fined $2,000 after discovering that it failed to report nearly $53,000 in spending in initial filings.

At the time, Gallego’s campaign adviser, Andy Barr, said, “The Gallego campaign immediately acted to self-report the error, and we have followed through with every request made by the FEC to ensure this won’t be a problem in the future.”

Gallego is also seeking an emergency stay from an Arizona appeals court to block the unsealing of his 2017 divorce file. In January, the Free Beacon filed a motion to unseal the hidden records, and on July 3, 2024, the Yavapai district court ordered the file unsealed by July 18, 2024. The Arizona Court of Appeals is currently reviewing the matter.