Gov. Newsom, Democrats are now cautiously optimistic about the California recall election
There's a week left before California's gubernatorial recall election ends, and what was starting to look like a neck-and-neck race for Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) two weeks ago doesn't look quite so close anymore.
"This has been a stomach-churning ride" for the governor, but "it is very clear that Newsom is feeling confident" now, Politico California reporter Carla Marinucci said Wednesday, following a Newsom rally featuring Vice President Kamala Harris. "Several polls are showing him pulling it out, and not by small margins. At this point it may be a question of how big the landslide is going to be."
Newsom's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic is what prompted the recall campaign, and GOP opposition to his popular pandemic policies might save him, Marinucci says. "But he was handed another, very potent piece of ammunition with the entry of Larry Elder. For four months they've tried to make this about a Trump-fueled recall, and then Larry Elder came into the race and became the poster child for everything Trump."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
If more than 50 percent of California voters choose "yes" on the recall ballot, Newsom is out and the highest vote-getting alternative candidate becomes governor. Elder is polling at about 24 percent, 14 points higher than his nearest competitor, according to the FiveThirtyEight average.
Elder, a conservative talk radio host, "is convinced that voters are frustrated enough with Newsom that they will abandon their liberal views on climate, crime, and education — and their support for many of Newsom's efforts to quell the pandemic — to hire someone who would handle things more like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R)," David Weigel writes at The Washington Post. "Democrats are convinced that the governor will survive the recall as long as Elder keeps talking."
"In interviews over the weekend, supporters of the recall spoke of the friends and neighbors who wanted Newsom gone," Weigel reports, "and their disbelief at polling that shows just 43 percent of voters inclined to remove him."
Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Republican movie star who won California's governorship in the 2003 recall campaign, told CNN's Dana Bash that Newsom is in "very dangerous" waters, and "the atmosphere is exactly the same" as before he unseated Gov. Gray Davis (D). Newsom is far more popular than Davis was, Elder much less popular than Schwarzenegger, and California is much less Republican, but if Democrats don't vote, that may not matter.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Today's political cartoons - April 20, 2024
Cartoons Saturday's cartoons - papal ideas, high-powered debates, and more
By The Week US Published
-
5 sleeper hit cartoons about Trump's struggles to stay awake in court
Cartoons Artists take on courtroom tranquility, war on wokeness, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The true story of Feud: Capote vs. The Swans
In depth The writer's fall from grace with his high-flying socialite friends in 1960s Manhattan is captured in a new Disney+ series
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
Poland, Germany nab alleged anti-Ukraine spies
Speed Read A man was arrested over a supposed Russian plot to kill Ukrainian President Zelenskyy
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Israel hits Iran with retaliatory airstrike
Speed Read The attack comes after Iran's drone and missile barrage last weekend
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Peter Murrell: Sturgeon's husband charged over SNP 'embezzlement' claims
Speed Read SNP expresses 'shock' as former chief executive rearrested in long-running investigation into claims of mishandled campaign funds
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Mark Menzies: Tories investigate MP after 'bad people' cash claims
Speed Read Fylde MP will sit as an independent while party looks into allegations he misused campaign funds on medical expenses and blackmail pay-out
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Why Johnson won't just pass Ukraine aid
Speed Read The House Speaker could have sent $60 billion in military aid to Ukraine — but it would have split his caucus
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Sudan on brink of collapse after a year of war
Speed Read 18 million people face famine as the country continues its bloody downward spiral
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump's first criminal trial starts with jury picks
Speed Read The former president faces charges related to hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How will Israel respond to Iran's direct attack?
Speed Read Iran’s weekend attack on Israel could escalate into a wider Middle East war
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published