SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Vice President Kamala Harris urged voters in her home state of California to defend the Democratic Party's progressive values by defeating the recall against Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The visit comes as Governor Gavin Newsom's campaign team laid out a clear strategy heading into the recall election. Specifically, they're highlighting the contrast between him and recall challenger Larry Elder and making the election a national issue.
That's exactly what the campaign did when they brought Vice President Kamala Harris to California with six days left in the recall. She echoed the campaign's messaging as to what's at stake in the election, including COVID-19 safety measures, labor rights and abortion restrictions.
"They wouldn't be trying to recall him except that he says that access to health care is right and not a privilege of just those who can afford it," Harris said at the event.
The final element focused on Larry Elder, a conservative talk show host who is considered a leader among the pro-recall candidates.
"He said the first thing he'd do before his first cup of tea is he will sign an executive order eliminating mask wearing for our kids in public schools and eliminating vaccine verification," Newsom said at the event.
Elder took to Facebook to say flying in Harris would not make Newsom look any better.
"If Gavin Newsom thinks that flying in Joe Biden and Kamala Harris — not exactly the most admired government officials at the present time — will make him look better, that’s all you need to know about how oblivious and detached Newsom is from a large majority of Californians," he said on Facebook.
The event was packed with other speakers, including Congresswoman Barbara Lee, the lieutenant governor, attorney general and more.
A new ad with former President Barack Obama is expected to be released and White House officials say President Joe Biden is expected to make his way to California.
Harris campaigns with Newsom
Vice President Kamala Harris urged voters in her home state of California to defend the Democratic Party's progressive values by defeating the recall against Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Harris appeared alongside Newsom on Wednesday in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she was born and rose to political prominence.
Her visit comes with six days left in the recall that could kick the first-term Democratic governor out of office a year early.
She says California's support for women's rights, abortion access and labor rights are all at stake in the contest.
Republican candidate Larry Elder criticized Newsom for bringing in Harris, saying the race isn't about national politics.
President Biden is expected to visit the state early next week.
Read the full story from the AP HERE.
California Recall Fast Facts
On July 17, California Secretary of State Shirley Weber released a list of the 41 candidates who qualified to run in the recall election. About 70 candidates initially filed a statement of intent to run with the secretary of state, according to Ballotpedia.
On July 21, Weber signed off on the finalized list of candidates who'll appear on the recall ballot. The number grew to 46 after a judge ruled that candidates should not be required to submit tax forms for a recall election.
The final day for candidates to file paperwork to run in the recall election was July 16.
The final report from the Secretary of State's office, released on June 23, validated 1,719,943 signatures on the recall petition. The recall effort needed 1,495,709 verified signatures to trigger a recall election. Approximately 441,406 signatures were invalidated.
Only 43 people of the more than 1.7 million Californians who signed the recall petition chose to remove their name from the list.
On July 1, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis finalized the cost of the election at $276 million.
More information on the recall election
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