Carbajal Defends Past Financial Struggles

Supervisor Salud Carbajal, who has significantly out-raised all 11 candidates in the race to represent the 24th District in Congress, has tens of thousands of dollars in personal credit card debt. According to financial disclosure forms, the amount is between $35,001 and $80,000. (A campaign spokesperson declined to give a better estimate of the amount.)

In addition, Carbajal has student loan debt between $15,001 and $50,000 from 1994, when he received a master’s degree in organizational management at Fielding Graduate Institute. He also took a loan out of his retirement to the tune of $18,253, which he is paying back, the spokesperson said. In the early 1990s, he had three federal tax liens (totaling nearly $11,000) filed against him, but he paid them off in 2000.

Carbajal said in an email many middle-class Americans are struggling, and he is running to fight for them. “Like many families, there was a time I fell behind on paying my bills,” Carbajal said. “However, my taxes have been paid in full, and I continue be current on all of my financial obligations.”