Your View/ Recall election blues,
When I have written columns for The Mammoth Times in the past, the teacher (professor) in me suggests that I provide information and let you, the reader, draw your own conclusion. However, this time I feel the need to inject my own editorial opinion: Just vote “NO” on the recall. Before I get to my reasoning, and before you draw your own conclusion and make your own decision, let me provide some background. Gavin Newsom was elected governor in 2018 with almost 62 percent of the vote, against 38 percent for John Cox. And, by the way, if that name sounds familiar it is because John Cox has been traveling the state with a Kodiak bear and is hoping that this time, he will become governor as a result of the recall. That said, if you don’t like Newsom, there are multiple chances to vote him out of office within the next 15 months besides a recall, which is costing the voters of California approximately $276 million. Under “normal” circumstances, if Governor Newsom were to decide to run for a second term, he would have to go through the primary process – for 2022 the primary will again be in June – and then the top two vote getters would stand for election in November. And assuming he were to get through the primary, then he would run in the general election in November in which case he may, or may not, win. It is likely too late to do anything about that; the process is underway. But this is a further reason as to why the recall process itself should change at some point (That is a topic for another column). At this time, there is a recall election slated for Sept. 14 so now it’s time to get to why I think you should vote “NO.” There are two questions on the ballot. First question: Should Governor Newsom be recalled? This is a “YES/NO” question. As long as more than 50 percent of all the voters agree that he should not be recalled, then he remains in office until the election process kicks in. Or, put another way, if any number above 50 percent votes “YES,” then the Governor is removed from office (subsequent to certification of the votes 38 days after the election). At that point, the new governor would be sworn in and would remain in office pending the results of the 2022 gubernatorial election. This is the easy part. It is the second question that is causing real confusion and consternation; the question of WHO should be the governor if Newsom is recalled. But here is the critical point and the main reason you should vote “NO.” For the second question, it is not a majority vote that prevails but a plurality, which could mean that the top vote getter on the second question might still only get 15 percent of the vote – and yet that person could become our next governor. Does this sound crazy? It is and here is where you should be asking yourself: “Is this any way to run a state?” And it gets even crazier. Right now, 46 people are on the ballot to replace the Governor if the “YES” votes prevail. To qualify to be on the ballot (and I use the term “qualify” here loosely), an individual must file a declaration of candidacy with the appropriate officials, file nomination papers with at least 100 valid signatures, and pay a filing fee of $4,194.94. Or, the individual may submit a minimum of 7,000 valid signatures in lieu of the filing fee. You will note that nowhere is there any statement of qualifications, which is why a range of people from serious candidates like former Republican San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer to billboard presence Angelyne are all on the ballot. (And, by the way, you can vote “NO” on the recall and still vote for a candidate you choose on the second question. But the way the California recall system works, Newsom cannot be on the ballot to replace himself, nor is the current Lieutenant Governor – one of whose main responsibilities is to take over if the governor cannot ser ve.). I personally do not think so, which is why I advocate voting NO. Indeed, many of us are dissatisfied with things that the Governor did; who can forget his idiotic decision to go to a birthday party at the French Laundry during lockdown, after all? But should that outweigh the fact that California is running a budget surplus, has one of the highest vaccination rates (and lowest Covid rates) in the country, has an economy that is thriving when many states are still struggling to recover from the impact of Covid, is increasing spending for education, etc.? And one can question the legality of a process that would allow a small group of people to determine who our next Governor should be rather than adhere to the “normal” voting process? You don’t have to like Newsom or even approve of the job he is doing to vote “NO” against the recall on principle: the process is incredibly flawed and allows a very small group of people in effect to determine who the next governor will be. That seems to fly in the face of everything we know about democracy and fairness in elections. The way to make your voice heard in opposition to the process is to vote “NO.” And if you don’t like Gavin Newsom, then vote against him or for someone else in the primary or the general election. You can have your chance then.