Gov. Newsom appoints ex-spokesperson with domestic violence sentence to state commission

Outgoing California Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Nathan “Nate” Ballard to the state historical resources commission, a move announced in a late Friday press release, Mission Local reported.

Ballard was sentenced in 2021 to four years probation for misdemeanor corporal injury and child abuse related to a 2020 incident involving his then-wife and young daughter, according to Mission Local.

He pleaded no contest to the charges, avoided jail time, and was supported in court by letters from former San Francisco officials, including interim Mayor Mark Farrell and former Supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier, Mission Local noted.

Ballard previously served as spokesperson for then-San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom from 2007 to 2009 and later co-founded a public relations firm with a former mayoral spokesperson, Mission Local reported.

Ballard told the San Francisco Standard that his former wife had made false allegations against him. He is under court orders to avoid contact with his former wife and two children for six years, Mission Local added.