California Gov. Gavin Newsom on March 19, 2021 in San Francisco, California. Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, faces a boisterous recall effort from disgruntled citizens. While the effort existed prior to the coronavirus crisis, it picked up steam following outrage over coronavirus, lockdowns, and Newsom s own ill-advised trip to a swanky Napa Valley restaurant while his constituents endured pandemic restrictions.
It s common for California governors to face recall threats, but it s rare for one to actually lose his or her job in a recall election. Only Democrat Gray Davis was ousted, in 2003, and was ultimately replaced by the Terminator himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
SACRAMENTO
As the pandemic continues to shutter businesses, close schools and upend lives in California, Gov. Gavin Newsom has become a target of angry frustration for some, driving a grassroots effort to recall him from office. What once started as a pipe dream is beginning to look like a political threat for the Democratic governor.
But a Times investigation found that recall campaign leaders, seeking to capitalize on the darkening public mood, allied with radical and extreme elements early on to help collect signatures. Those included groups promoting distrust of government, science and medicine; peddlers of QAnon doomsday conspiracies; “patriots” readying for battle and one organization allied with the far-right extremist group, the Proud Boys.