CALIF. GOP PUMPS $125K INTO EFFORT TO RECALL GOVERNOR

The California Republican Party announced Saturday it is giving $125,000 to the campaign aimed at recalling Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The infusion of cash comes at a critical time for organizers, who are required to collect 1.5 million valid petition signatures by mid-march to qualify the proposal for the ballot.

The funds will go toward hiring workers to gather signatures. So far, that work has fallen largely on volunteers, along with mailings sent to households around the state.

The funds were donated to Rescue California, one of several political committees working to oust Newsom from office.

Organizers say they have collected over 1.5 million signatures so far, although it’s not clear how many of them will be disqualified because of technical or other errors. Committees behind the recall hope to gather well beyond the required 1.5 million, to ensure it qualifies.

“We expect to collect another 400,000 signatures,” Rescue California campaign manager Anne Dunsmore said in a statement. With the six-figure donation, “we added a substantial line item to our budget.”

In Pacific Beach Saturday, volunteers continued their weekly effort to gather signatures and expected to be out there for the next several weekends. They waved f lags supporting former President Donald Trump as part of their “Freedom Rally.”

The small group was outnumbered by San Diego police, who monitored the situation along three blocks of Ocean Front Walk, where a pro-trump rally and counterprotest last month prompted multiple arrests and confrontations. This time, only a small number of counterdemonstrators turned out.