Some of the biggest donors to the recall effort also funded Trump’s 2020 campaign. They include Beverly Hills real estate developer Geoff Palmer, who disbursed $ 150,000 for the anti-Newsom campaign, and Silicon Valley venture capitalist Douglas Leone, who, with his wife Patricia Perkins-Leone, donated nearly $ 100,000. Retired construction equipment executive Howard Groff and his wife Susan Groff distributed $ 75,000.
And while the majority of donors so far are from California, Trump funders have reported seeing an upsurge in interest from large near and far contributors.
“Donors in California and across the country are starting to shift their focus to California’s recall efforts,” said Caroline Wren, who raised funds in Trump’s reelection campaign.
The fundraising totals pale in comparison to the huge sums raised by many party candidates and committees during the 2020 election. But the money caught the attention of Newsom and the Democrats, and it is increasingly clear that the organizers are raising money. enough to give the recall effort a big chance to gather the petitions it needs to qualify for the vote. That would force the first recall of an incumbent California governor since 2003, when voters expelled Democrat Gray Davis from office.
The influx of cash underscores how energy continues to flow through Republican donor circles after Trump’s defeat, with many looking for a way out to continue fighting the Democrats. Large donors are usually eliminated after a presidential race, but some are returning to the recall, which could become the 2021 election.
Bill White, a Georgia-based business development executive who raised nearly $ 5 million for Trump’s 2020 campaign, said he has encouraged California donors to get involved. White predicted that more taxpayers would engage if the recall qualified for the vote, which would allow Republican candidates to run to replace Newsom later this year.
“There is definitely money going there, and if you reach the next limit, you will see a lot of support for a potential candidate,” said White.
It is not just the megadonadores that are opening their wallets. Anne Dunsmore, a veteran Republican Party fundraiser who is helping to lead the campaign, said in an email to donors on Thursday that her organization, Recall California, raised more than $ 400,000 from more than 11,000 small contributors for direct mail. The average donation from these donors, she said, was $ 37.
National groups with lots of money are also getting involved.
The Association of Republican Governors has been monitoring the recall effort – but with the aim of potentially investing in a revocation election, rather than contributing to the collection of signatures. The group, which is closely linked to the party’s donor class, has been in contact with people close to the petition campaign and has spoken to several potential candidates. RGA recently commissioned a survey of 1,200 people on a possible race conducted by Bill McInturff, a researcher who was involved in the 2003 recall.
Organizers must send about 1.5 million valid signatures to the California Secretary of State’s office by March 17 to qualify for the vote. The recall leaders say that by the end of this week they will have collected 1.4 million signatures. They set a goal to send 1.8 million signatures to give themselves time off in case some are considered invalid by election officials.
With employees taking an increasing interest, organizers are moving to capitalize. Dunsmore said in his e-mail that a group of donors from Silicon Valley is leading an effort to finance professional subscription collectors to meet the mid-March deadline. The taxpayer group includes investor David Sacks, a former Newsom sponsor who recently became an outspoken critic.
The largest individual donor to the recall company was John Kruger, an unknown investor in Orange County who in December made a contribution of $ 500,000. Kruger objected to Newsom’s decision to limit the size of religious meetings as a way to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Also playing an important role is San Francisco venture capitalist Dixon Doll, who has been active in Republican circles for years and has spent tens of thousands of dollars to support the unsuccessful 2016 presidential campaign by former Florida governor Jeb Bush. Doll and his wife, Carol, donated nearly $ 100,000 combined to the anti-Newsom campaign.
Former California Republican Party representative Doug Ose, a wealthy real estate developer who also plans to contribute, said he was surprised by the number of people who came to him about the initiative to oust Newsom.
“My phone has exploded since yesterday,” said Ose. “I don’t know the magic sauce to make something go viral, but it is clearly gaining more and more interest in the state, for sure.”
Political observers in California say a revocation election is likely to take place in late August or early September. The ballot would pose two questions: a positive or negative vote on whether Newsom should be removed from office, and then a decision on which candidate should replace him. If the majority approves a revocation, the candidate with the largest share of votes in the second question will become the governor.
If the recall reaches the polls, Republicans admit that they will need to rely on large donors to topple Newsom. Running TV ads in the big state is an expensive proposition, and California has become more friendly to Democrats since 2003. And despite its declining poll numbers, Newsom already has more than $ 20 million in its campaign account and would be able to access a huge donor network across the state that fueled its political rise.
The list of candidates to face it can grow to a colossal size, if recent history is any guide. More than 100 candidates ran to succeed Davis in the 2003 recall, a list that included everyone from actor Gary Coleman to porn star Mary Carey. More than 55 percent of voters supported Davis’ recall, handing the victory to the biggest voter, professional bodybuilder and Hollywood star, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
With another recall increasingly looking like a real possibility, Trump’s top donors across the country are starting to weigh in with their favorite candidate for a Newsom replacement. Many of them are contacting Richard Grenell, a Southern California resident and the president’s interim director of national intelligence, to encourage him to enter the race.
Hossein Khorram, a Washington state-based real estate developer who donated more than $ 100,000 to pro-Trump causes during the 2020 election, said in a text message that California had become a “welfare state” under Newsom and that “raising money for Governor Grenell would be an exciting experience that I would not miss for any reason.”
White, who organized a fundraiser for Trump with Grenell during the election, predicted that the former Trump administration official would receive ample financial support from the former president’s supporters should he decide to enter the race.
“If Ric were the candidate, we would be 100% behind him, 100% would do everything we could to help him and save California,” said White.
But while Trump donors crave Grenell, some California Republicans fear that anyone closely associated with Trump will diminish their prospects in a state where the former president has barely got a third of the vote.
Meanwhile, other candidates have begun to draw attention within the state. Former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and wealthy businessman John Cox, who lost to Newsom by a wide margin in the 2018 elections, announced their intention to run. Ose said he is also considering an offer.
Whoever ends up competing will hardly lack resources. Ose noted that the election would be one of the few major races in the country this year, ensuring that it receives widespread attention.
“I think the prospect of a recall is in the national interest for both parties and for any number of outsourced players,” said Ose. “So I don’t think there will be a lack of money on either side of the issue of recalling Newsom.”