Organizers are expected to send 1.5 million valid signatures to the secretary of state’s office by March 17 to qualify the recall for the vote, but say they are trying to gather hundreds of thousands more because election officials inevitably consider some to be invalid.
The RNC is partnering with the state GOP, which has also been heavily involved in the signature collection drive.
The party’s investment is modest – but it shows that, as the recall becomes more likely, national donors are increasingly focusing on the political struggle.
Republican Party officials say the recall – which quickly emerged as one of the highest-profile battles of the year – is a major cause around which the party can unify in the race for the 2022 midterm elections and cover up civil war between forces aligned with former President Donald Trump and those who want Republicans to distance themselves from him.
Newsom’s opponents once faced great chances of qualifying the recall for the vote, but gained momentum in mid-November, when a masked Newsom was photographed at a crowded party at a sophisticated Napa Valley restaurant. The governor has faced an intense reaction, with critics accusing him of challenging the strict coronavirus protocols that he himself has implemented.
As part of the RNC’s investment, volunteers will call California residents and ask them to sign the petition.
“Gov. Newsom’s authoritarian measures, blatant reach and mismanagement of the COVID-19 pandemic have proved that he has no qualifications to lead the state of California, ”said RNC President Ronna McDaniel in a statement. “It is time for the people to use their constitutional remedy to remove it from power.”
Anne Dunsmore, a veteran operative for the Republican Party in California who is helping to lead the recall process, said: “The fact that the RNC is thinking about going into this is even more positive proof that it’s past time. It’s inevitable [the recall will qualify] and it is one of the most important items on the national political scene this year ”.
The Republican Governors Association, another well-funded national Republican Party organization, is also following the recall closely. The group contacted people close to the petition process, spoke with several potential candidates and recently ordered a vote for a possible race.
RNC officials say their decision to invest in the race will also give them the opportunity to test their volunteering skills as they start preparing for the 2022 midterm elections. Although Republicans have not won a statewide contest in California since 2006, last year they recovered three of the Southern California House seats they lost in the middle of their 2018 term.
Newsom has come under heavy criticism in recent months for its way of dealing with the coronavirus pandemic and the hard-hit state economy. Your search numbers have dropped in recent searches, with one showing your approval rating of up to 46%.
California’s only government revocation came in 2003, when the then governor. Gray Davis was kicked out of the job and replaced by professional bodybuilder and Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican.
If the recall qualifies for the vote, political observers say it is likely to happen in November. The ballot would have two questions: the first, an up or down vote on whether Newsom should be removed from office, and the second being who should replace him. If the majority of voters support a revocation, the candidate with the most votes on the second question on the ballot he would become governor. (Newsom would not be eligible to appear on the ballot if the recall is approved.)
The Newsom team tried to launch the recall as fueled by Trump and his allies, hoping to lessen support for removal in a state where the former president barely managed to win a third of the vote.
Newsom strategist Dan Newman said the RNC’s decision “was not a surprise”, adding that “it is well documented that right-wing extremists lead this effort”.
“People here want to focus on vaccination and reopening, without the distraction of a special $ 100 million electoral circus just months before a scheduled election,” he added.
Still, Newsom appears to be taking the threat seriously. He became increasingly visible in the past week, holding a series of press conferences to promote mass vaccination clinics against coronavirus.
The White House also expressed its opinion, with press secretary Jen Psaki accessing Twitter to declare that President Joe Biden “is clearly opposed to any effort to revoke” Newsom.
Anticipating that the recall will be qualified, the alleged Newsom substitutes have already started attacking each other. Earlier this week, Republican John Cox, a wealthy businessman who lost a lot to Newsom in 2018, started running a TV ad targeting former San Diego mayor Kevin Faulconer.
Cox and Faulconer have already announced their candidacies against Newsom in 2022 and say they will seek a spot on the ballot if the recount is valid. Former MP Doug Ose (R-Calif.) Was also mentioned as a potential candidate, and Trump’s allies have encouraged Ric Grenell, who served as ambassador to Germany and acting director of national intelligence in the Trump administration, to enter in the race.
Organizers California Patriot Coalition and Rescue California claim to have raised $ 3.5 million. The majority of donations came from within the state, although the effort has increasingly drawn the attention of national donors. The Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee’s political action committee recently cut a check for $ 25,000.
Recall leaders used the recent influx of cash to pay professional subscription collectors. David Sacks, a venture capitalist in San Francisco and a former Newsom supporter, donated $ 65,000 to help fund the effort, organizers say; other large donors are also helping.
The state GOP, for its part, says it made 900,000 calls to residents asking them to sign the petition and recruited 3,000 new volunteers.
“Keeping Gov. Newsom accountable is my top priority,” said Jessica Patterson, the Republican Party’s state president, “and I’m excited that our party is united behind this effort as we continue to build grassroots support across the state” .