Small businesses across the country have suffered shutdowns that sometimes seem to explode as suddenly as outbreaks in the coronavirus itself. Restaurants, gyms, corner stores and spas have closed, some after trying to stay there for months.
The pain in California was acute. Nearly 40,000 small businesses closed in the state by September – more than in any other state since the pandemic began, according to a report compiled by Yelp. Half had closed permanently, according to the report, far more than the 6,400 that had closed permanently in New York.
Few of the pandemic choices that Newsom faced were easy. California suffered greatly from Covid-19, with more than 3.5 million cases and 47,000 deaths. Los Angeles County, one of the places most affected by the recent rise in the virus, has more than 1.2 million cases and 19,000 deaths.
Dan Newman, a political strategist for Newsom, said the governor was focused on vaccinating against coronavirus and reopening the state. Mr. Newman blamed “state and national Republican party supporters” for supporting “this Republican recall scheme in the hope of creating an expensive, disturbing and destructive circus”.
Recognizing that the pandemic “has strongly impacted our small businesses,” the director of the Governor’s Office of Economic and Business Development, Dee Dee Myers, pointed to several state programs that offer help. They include the California Covid-19 Small Business Relief Grant Program, the California Reconstruction Fund and the Main Street Hiring Tax Credit.
Ronna McDaniel, chairman of the Republican National Committee, said in a statement that Newsom had “proved that he is woefully unqualified to lead the state of California”.
In places like Los Angeles County, where Newsom won 72% of the vote in 2018, and neighboring Orange County, a more conservative area, the anger of small businesses is particularly intense. A local businessman who leads the movement to open California’s economy is Andrew Gruel, 40, a chef who owns Slapfish, a chain of seafood restaurants.