California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom could face another recall election in November if an effort to remove him gains enough signatures to get the measure on the ballot, Politico reported Monday.
Rescue California, the group leading the recall effort over the state’s budget deficit and the governor’s national political ambitions, will serve Newsom with the paperwork Monday morning, according to Politico. Some of the same conservative activists organized a similar recall effort in 2021, when Newsom overcame his former presidential candidate and radio host Larry Elder by roughly 30 points.
“Gavin Newsom has abandoned the state to advance his presidential ambitions, leaving behind a $73 billion budget deficit and a public safety, immigration and education crisis,” Orange County fundraiser Anne Dunsmore, who is the campaign director for Rescue California, told Politico. (RELATED: Newsom Sails Past Republican Recall, Will Remain California’s Governor)
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 20: Prince Daniel of Sweden, Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, Johan Forssell, Sweden’s Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade, speak with Governor of California Gavin Newsom at the Stanford Mansion on February 20, 2024 in Sacramento, California. Governor Newsom and Forssell signed a renewed climate partnership between California and Sweden, continuing the state’s efforts on international climate collaboration. (Photo by Renée C. Byer-Pool/Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 20: Governor of California Gavin Newsom (2nd from R) and Johan Forssell, Sweden’s Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade, (2nd from L) sign a renewed climate partnership between California and Sweden, continuing the state’s commitment to international climate collaboration, alongside Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden (L) at the Stanford Mansion on February 20, 2024 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Renée C. Byer-Pool/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 14: California Governor Gavin Newsom (R) and his wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom (L) talk with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen (C) as they await the arrival of Chinese President Xi Jinping at San Francisco International Airport ahead of the APEC summit on November 14, 2023 in San Francisco, California. The APEC summit is being held in San Francisco and runs through November 17. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 14: Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) greets California Governor Gavin Newsom (L) as he arrives at San Francisco International Airport ahead of the APEC summit on November 14, 2023 in San Francisco, California. The APEC summit is being held in San Francisco and runs through November 17. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Newsom has long been the subject of speculation regarding his presidential ambitions as concerns over President Joe Biden’s age and electability have mounted. The governor participated in a debate with Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida when the latter was a presidential candidate in late November.
“California needs a full-time governor who is fully focused on the serious problems the state and its citizens are facing,” Dunsmore continued. “This may be our last opportunity to rescue and restore our state, while we highlight for the rest of the country the destruction Newsom has left in his wake.”
COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 14: Gubernatorial recall candidate Larry Elder (L) speaks to supporters at an election night event. Californians headed to the polls today to cast their ballots in the California recall election of Gov. Gavin Newsom. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
The recall organizers would need to garner enough signatures to equal 12% of the turnout from the previous gubernatorial election.
The effort has a May deadline to shore up the approximate 1.6 million signatures to get the initiative on the ballot in November, according to the outlet. If the effort fails to do so in time, it can still continue gathering signatures for an election at a later date.
“We are taking it seriously,” Nathan Click, a spokesperson for Newsom, told Politico. “These Trump Republicans are targeting Gov. Newsom because he is out there defending democracy and fighting for the reelection of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. He’s not going to be distracted from that fight. Democracy’s on the ballot, and he’s going to keep fighting.”
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 13: (L-R) George Clooney, Don Cheadle, Senator Laphonza Butler, Governor Gavin Newsom, Alberto M. Carvalho and Blanca Cruz attend a pep rally to celebrate the second year of the Roybal Film and Television Production School on October 13, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Randy Shropshire/Getty Images for Entertainment Industry Foundation)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 13: California Governor Gavin Newsom (C) speaks as Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (L) listens at a press conference near the closed I-10 elevated freeway following a large pallet fire, which occurred Saturday at a storage yard beneath the freeway, on November 13, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Engineers have been assessing the extent of the damage and it remains unknown how long the freeway, which is a major commuter artery through the downtown area, will remain closed and complicate traffic for the city. Newsom said the fire was caused by arson and that over 300,000 vehicles drive through the freeway corridor each day with drivers being urged to use public transit. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
The governor currently has a 46% approval rating among Californians, according to a Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll conducted in early January.
Newsom’s campaign did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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