Gov. Newsom calls GOP rivals ‘anti-vax,’ but are they?

SACRAMENTO — California Gov. Gavin Newsom has made his leadership during the pandemic a centerpiece of his campaign to keep his job, warning in lifeand-death terms that his Republican rivals in the recall election are anti-vaccine crusaders who would expose people to a new wave of COVID risks.

The recall election that culminates Sept. 14 was largely was driven by frustration with Newsom’s sweeping coronavirus orders that closed schools and businesses and, in turn, cost millions of jobs. He is arguing his decisions saved thousands of lives and replacing him with a Republican could result in soaring case rates and deaths.

In a television ad this week, the first-term Democrat’s campaign plastered his Republican rivals with the label “anti-vax.” Another ad calls the outcome of the recall vote “a matter of life and death.”

The top GOP candidates — Larry Elder, Kevin Faulconer, Kevin Kiley and John Cox — say they’ve been vaccinated against the virus. All also have said people should get the shot if they wish but that government shouldn’t force them. None has said the vaccines are dangerous, a stance typically associated with the term “anti-vax.”

“I think people in high-risk categories, people who are older, ought to be vaccinated. But I certainly don’t believe that the government should mandate that,” Elder, the leading GOP candidate, told reporters this week.

“I’m not anti-vax,” the 69-yearold talk radio host added. “I’ve been vaccinated because of my age, because of a blood condition I have, and my doctor strongly advised me to become vaccinated.”

To him, Newsom is promoting “a lie” about his GOP rivals to alarm voters and distract attention from the state’s surging crime rate, widespread homelessness, struggling small businesses and housing crisis.

Elder and the other GOP candidates have at times shared misinformation about coronavirus and the vaccines, or offered a wink to the anti-vaccine movement.

In the first televised debate, Cox said people who contract the virus don’t need the vaccine, a stance that goes against recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In a recent interview with CNN, Elder said “young people” are unlikely to contract the disease and don’t need to be vaccinated.

Newsom and many health experts are encouraging anyone age 12 and older to get the vaccine. While children are less likely to be hospitalized than adults, the delta variant has caused a surge in youth hospitalizations.

In the early days of the pandemic, Newsom imposed the nation’s first statewide shutdown order. He says his bold actions saved lives. California has recorded the most virus deaths by far — nearly 66,000. However, the death rate is 33rd per capita.

This week, Newsom sought to capitalize on recent improvement during the latest COVID spike, saying California “has among the lowest case rates — the fourth lowest in America today.” It’s not clear what measurement he was using — figures from Johns Hopkins show California ranks 31st in new cases per capita in the last two weeks.