Kari Lake’s Senate campaign experienced a significant development today following a startling court decision that disclosed previously sealed divorce records pertaining to her opponent’s history. Representative Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), who initiated divorce proceedings against his then-wife, Kate Gallego, in 2016, faced a lengthy legal struggle to maintain the confidentiality of the case. The Washington Free Beacon successfully navigated a 10-month legal battle, culminating in the Arizona Supreme Court’s dismissal of Gallego’s final attempt to keep the documents confidential.
In a memorandum submitted to the court that year, Gallego stated that Kate Gallego “had not yet been served” with the divorce papers and that “her attorney entered an appearance” had not yet taken place, emphasizing that she was “likely to give birth any day,” as reported by The Washington Free Beacon. The divorce petition asserted that the “parties’ marriage is irretrievably broken” and indicated “no reasonable prospect of reconciliation.”
It appears that Kate Gallego was taken by surprise by the filing. In her response to the divorce petition in February 2017, she claimed to be “without knowledge of information sufficient to form a belief” regarding the irreparability of the marriage, thereby contesting her husband’s assertion.
In summary, Ruben Gallego’s wife, who was serving as a Phoenix city councilwoman at the time, was heavily pregnant when she received divorce papers that she had not anticipated, as noted by the Free Beacon. Furthermore, the court documents reveal that the congressman sought to impose court costs on his wife under an Arizona statute permitting such fees. In her February 2017 response, Kate Gallego requested the court to “enter an order that husband contribute to wife’s attorney’s fees and costs.”
While divorce records in Arizona are generally accessible to the public, Ruben Gallego contended that this particular case warrants special consideration due to the fact that “each party is a high-profile public official” and the “case will likely receive intense scrutiny from the media,” as stated in the filings, according to the Beacon.
On Wednesday, the Arizona Supreme Court denied the Gallegos’ appeal to maintain the confidentiality of redacted records while they contested previous court rulings. The disclosure of these records subjects Ruben Gallego, a Democrat, to a degree of personal examination that he sought to evade during the critical concluding stage of his Senate campaign against Republican Kari Lake. Gallego has repeatedly asserted that his experience with post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from his service in the Iraq War significantly influenced his divorce.
