California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom just handed his former spokesman, an expert in spinning narratives, a very prominent state commission seat just five years after he pleaded no contest to charges of domestic violence and child endangerment. The Golden State’s lame duck governor, who finally terms out in January 2027, recently caused massive controversy after commuting the death sentences of 548 inmates.
Newsom awarded Nathan Ballard the coveted state commission seat. “The governor considers the experience, qualifications, and suitability for each post in making appointments,” Tara Gallegos, a spokesperson for the governor’s office, said in a statement delivered to the California Post. “He believes that abuse of any individual is unacceptable, and that those who commit such conduct should face accountability. He also believes in second chances.”
Ballard was appointed to California’s State Historical Resources Commission on November 6 by the governor. He has repeatedly claimed to be innocent of the charges that were filed against him during a drunken family vacation to Napa in 2020. During the trip, Ballard was accused of violently shoving his wife’s head into a glass door and then holding a pillow over his four-year-old daughter.
According to the New York Post, Ballard pleaded no contest in 2021 to misdemeanor charges of child endangerment and corporal injury to an intimate partner, receiving a total of four years of probation for his alleged crimes. The former Newsom spokesman has stated that he is innocent of the charges and accused his ex-wife of fabricating the whole thing, noting that a judge later modified a stay-away order to allow him visitation rights with his kids.
In a statement delivered to the California Post, Ballard went on to say that he was “grateful” for the appointment from Newsom, stating that he accepts the criticism for his selection. “During my years in the political arena, I often made the most of an opponent’s worst moment, so I can hardly ask anyone to overlook mine,” Ballard explained.
Ballard was Newsom’s mayoral communications director from 2007 to 2010, which was a rather rough period of time for the Democratic governor after it was revealed that he had an affair with a married staffer. The former spokesman said that he’s been sober since 2020 and completed four years of supervised probation in 2025 with “zero violations.”
“I fully accept the consequences of my mistakes. I was arrested once in my life, in 2020, at age 51,” Ballard went on to say about the incident. “Since then, I have worked hard to move forward with optimism and lead a productive and meaningful life that my children can be proud of.” He then described the longtime relationship he has with Newsom, revealing the two men have known each other for three decades.
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“Over the last six years, I’ve worked with correctional officers on implementing the governor’s policy changes to our corrections institutions, which emphasize the rehabilitation and reintegration of people who have been incarcerated,” Ballard said. In an eight-page memo concerning the case, Ballard said that he was forced to plead no contest in order to prevent his daughter from testifying against her mother.