Gavin Newsom will face a recall after only 43 Californians withdrew petition signatures
Only 43 of the more than 1.7 million Californians who signed a petition to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom withdrew their signatures over the last several weeks, according to the Secretary of State’s office.
The remaining count still meets the threshold to initiate a recall election, which will almost certainly be held sometime this year.
Recall proponents had already turned in a sufficient number of verified recall signatures in April. However, in accordance with California election law, voters were given a 30-day period from April 26 to June 8 to request county officials remove their signatures from recall petitions.
Some, like former California Senate President pro Tem Don Perata, had hoped to convince more voters to rescind their signatures. Perata in April launched a committee called “Stop the Steal” a reference to the slogan used by those who falsely believed former President Donald Trump won the 2020 election.
His efforts were ultimately unsuccessful.
Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber on Wednesday notified the Department of Finance that the petition still had the requisite number of signatures to trigger an election.
Now, the Department of Finance has 30 days to estimate the costs of the gubernatorial recall. The department is asked to come up with two figures: the cost of a recall if it were held as a special election and the cost as if it were held as part of the next regularly scheduled election.
The costs must go to the governor, the lieutenant governor, secretary of state, and chair of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee by Aug. 5. At that point, the legislative committee will have 30 days to review and comment, after which, the Secretary of State will then certify the sufficient of signatures and Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis will schedule the election.