Fresh Recall Petition Against Gavin Newsom Approved For Signatures

A new recall petition to remove Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California from office was approved on Tuesday by the state’s Secretary of State for signature collection.

Newsom previously faced and defeated a recall campaign in 2021. Rescue California organized the latest petition to recall Newsom, citing the state’s public finances and policies regarding illegal immigrants, public safety, taxes, the COVID-19 pandemic and homelessness.

“The minimum number of valid signatures required to qualify the recall is 1,311,963 (12% of the 10,933,018 votes cast in the last election for Governor),” Democratic state Secretary of State Shirley Weber wrote in her public memorandum announcing the petition’s approval.

These signatures must be submitted to the Secretary of State’s office by Sept. 3 and must be from at least five different counties, each representing at least 1% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election, according to the memo.

Recall of Governor Gavin Newsom – Calendar of Events (2024) by Daily Caller News Foundation on Scribd

Between July 2022 and July 2023, the number of taxpaying residents in the state declined by 75,400, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

“Governor Newsom has abandoned the state to advance his Presidential ambitions, leaving behind a $68 Billion budget deficit and a public safety, immigration and education crisis,” Recall California wrote on its website. “[He] [g]ranted 700,000 illegal immigrants free health care at a cost to taxpayers of $3 billion annually, while cutting vital programs for veterans, school children, the disabled and the homeless.”

California’s public finances have experienced a dramatic reversal over the previous two years. The state had a $97.5 billion budget surplus in 2022 but ran a $31.5 billion deficit in 2023, according to CalMatters.

After winning 2021’s recall election with 61.9% of the votes, Newsom was re-elected to a second term as governor in 2022 with 59.2% of the vote. He has since served as a top surrogate for President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign, even as some commentators have speculated that he seeks to run for the presidency in 2024 should Biden be unavailable, though he has denied such claims.

“I think the vice president is naturally the one lined up [to succeed Biden], [a]nd I think we need to move past this notion that [Biden is] not going to run. President Biden is going to run and [is] looking forward to getting reelected. I think there’s been so much wallowing in the last few months and handwringing in this respect,” Newsom told NBC’s Meet The Press in an interview in September 2023.

Newsom is term-limited from seeking re-election as governor, though his political action committee (PAC) gained nearly $10 million in 2023.

Newsom’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.