A GOP-backed campaign has collected enough validated signatures to force a recall election of California Gov. Gavin Newsom later this year.
It’s a complete waste of taxpayers’ money because Newsom is up for reelection in 2022. The Los Angeles Times estimates that the recall could cost up to $400 million.
Even though it’s legal under California law, it’s also anti-democratic in nature. Newsom won a landslide victory in 2018 with 62% of the vote.
And a recall election would be an unnecessary distraction for Newsom as he attempts to bring back some semblance of normal life as an accelerating vaccine campaign shows signs of causing the coronavirus pandemic to recede.
On Monday, the California Secretary of State’s office reported that county officials have now verified at least 1,626,042 signatures on the recall petitions. Newsom’s opponents needed to gather the equivalent of 12% of the vote in the last gubernatorial election, or 1,495,709 valid signatures.
But there are still some bureaucratic procedures that state officials are required to follow before the recall is officially announced.
Newsom wasted no time in going on the offensive against the recall campaign. After the announcement by the Secretary of State’s office, he tweeted a “Stop the Republican Recall” ad tying the effort to remove him as a “power grab” by extremist Trump supporters.
Newsom’s opponents have tried to exploit discontent over restrictions put in place last year to stop the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. Then there was a surge in cases over the winter holiday season. California has also been slow to restore in-person classes for school children.
But Newsom is benefiting as the vaccine roll out has picked up steam. The CDC says California has the lowest COVID-19 case rate in the U.S., with 38.7 cases per 100,000 people compared with a nationwide average of 120.4 cases per 100,000.
Some of the most severe restrictions have already been lifted, and Newom has now set a target date of June 15 for fully reopening the state’s economy.
A recent survey by the Public Policy Institute of California showed that 56% of likely voters opposed the recall, while 40% supported removing Newsom.
State officials have not set a date for the recall election. County officials have until Thursday to report their final tallies of recall petition signatures. Then there is a 30-day period in which any voter who signed the recall petition can withdraw their signature. Only then will state officials conduct a second verification process to make sure there are still enough valid signatures to go ahead with the recall election.
Once a date is set by the lieutenant governor for the recall potential candidates seeking to replace Newsom can officially enter the race. Any election likely won’t be held until sometime between mid-November and early December.
CNN reported that among the Republicans who have declared interest in challenging Newsom are his 2018 opponent, businessman John Cox; former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and former Olympic decathlon champion and transgender reality TV star Caitlyn Jenner.
The procedure will be similar to that used in the successful 2003 recall ballot in which Democratic Gov. Gray Davis was removed and replaced by film star Arnold Schwarzenegger.
There will be two questions on the recall ballot. The first asks whether voters want to recall Newsom. The second asks which candidate would they like to replace Newsom if a majority of voters support the recall.
But California is a much bluer state today than it was in 2003. Schwarzenegger, who left office in 2011, was the state’s last Republican governor.