Newsom Survives Recall, Stays On As California Governor

California Governor Gavin Newsom survived a recall attempt and saved his seat. NBC News declared the win early Wednesday morning based on projections. 

RELATED: Crooked Newsom Fights for his Political Life as Recall Nears

Newsom Stays As California Governor

Newsom, a Democrat, survived the snap elections as well as the numerous issues that led to the recall. With the help of the Democrat Party led by President Joe Biden, they managed to get Demo voters out into the polling places to vote to retain Newsom as California governor.

During a short campaign period, many Democrat leaders warned that the state faces the risk of losing its progressive image. In addition, Democrats said that a Republican governor will definitely roll back COVID-19 protections enforced in the area. 

For the recall campaign, Newsom and national Democrats went out guns blazing. As the party can’t afford to lose a major state at this point, they took no chances in ensuring Newsom gets to keep his seat.

During the last California recall electrons in 2003. Democrat governor Gray Davis lost his seat. Movie star and staunch Republican Arnold Schwarzenneger ended up the winner and new California governor. For the 2021 edition, Democrats spent millions to ensure this won’t happen again.  

Thank You For The Yes Votes

The recall election asked the state’s voters if they wanted to remove Newsom as California governor. Voters will select either “Yes” or “No” and if they chose the former, they will need to list down their preferred replacement.

In a news conference after trends show he already won, Newsom thanked California voters for voting to retain him. “We said yes to science. We said yes to vaccines,” he said.

Then, he added that the yes votes also meant a yes to ending this pandemic, to people's right to vote without fear, and to women’s constitutional right to decide.

Right-Wing Power Grab

Newsom earlier portrayed the recall not as a vote against his leadership but as a right-wing power grab. Democrat voters in the state paid little attention to the recall at the time.

However, things changed when Republican talk show host Larry Elder started showing up in polls as the frontrunner. The conservative Elder immediately shot to the top of the polls.  

Elder took his defeat graciously and called on supporters to do the same. After hearing boos from the crowd when Elder mentioned Newsom, he said that they should remain gracious in defeat. “Let’s be gracious in defeat. We may have lost the battle, but we are going to win the war.”

Democrats Outnumber Republicans 2:1 in California

Even with a broad campaign, Elder and the other Republican candidates will have a hard time winning. California’s Democrat voters outnumbered Republicans around 2:1.

With these overwhelming numbers, the only way Gavin can lose his seat is if California democrats stay away from the polls. This is what happened during the recall petition.

Republican votes made COVID-19 restrictions an issue, helping them gather more than 1.5 million signatures to start the recall process. 

Thankfully for the California governor, more than a handful of Democrats went out and voted. Meanwhile, national Democrat leaders hoped that the recall results in California would serve as a model to spur Democrats to vote next year during the midterm elections. 

Other Measures

The recall election also included a number of measures that required California voters’ approval. This included getting 45% of the votes in support of California’s current public health measures.

33% said the measures are too strict, 18% said they’re not strict enough. Also, 70% of voters approved mask mandates for schools, while 63% voted to make vaccination a responsibility rather than a personal choice.

Watch the ABC7 video update reporting on the California recall election: Gov. Newsom stays in office, defeats recall:

Voters from California, how did you vote for Newsom’s recall petition? Do you agree with keeping Newsom in office for at least a year more? Or, do you prefer new leadership at this time?

Tell us what you think about California’s recall elections. Share your thoughts below.