Senate Candidate Michele Tafoya Wildly Claims ‘Almost 30% of Californians Are Homeless’

In a Thursday night appearance on Fox’s Gutfeld!, Minnesota U.S. Senate candidate Michele Tafoya wildly claimed that “almost 30% of Californians are homeless,” when in reality, the figure lies around 0.47%.

When asked by Fox’s Greg Gutfeld to comment on a clip of Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA), Tafoya, a former NFL sideline reporter and podcast host, said, “I can’t think of anything scarier than Gavin Newsom.”

She went on to list an assortment of qualms she has with the governor — including a population decline during his governorship, high gas prices, “abysmal” test scores, and the state’s response to both last January’s devastating Palisades Fire and the COVID-19 pandemic — before landing on homelessness.

“Almost 30% of Californians are homeless on any given night. 30%!” she emphasized. At least one “what?” could be heard in the background, though it’s not clear who on the panel spoke. Notably, along with Gutfeld, celebrity doctor Drew Pinsky, actor Zachary Levi, and Fox contributor Kat Timpf were also present.

“That is the largest margin by far,” continued Tafoya.

“30%?!” exclaimed Gutfeld, looking beyond puzzled.

Stumbling a bit, Tafoya corrected herself, glancing down at her lap: “I think it’s 28%, so close to 30% of their population is homeless on any given night.”

“Does that just mean they go out to dinner, and they’re not at home for a little while?” asked Timpf, seeming doubtful as well.

“Maybe!” Tafoya responded, seemingly in an attempt to laugh off her blunder. “For me, if you want hellscape, dystopia, scary, Gavin Newsom’s your man.”

In an essential fact-check, CNN’s Chief Washington Correspondent Jake Tapper wrote on Friday via X, “California has a homelessness problem, with an estimated 187,000 homeless. California does not have 12 million homeless people.”

Here, Tapper’s 12 million figure refers to 30% of California’s population of 40 million, just as Tafoya claimed.

Watch the clip above via Fox News.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!