SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is facing a likely recall election this year that threatens to remove him from office. Organizers say they have more than enough petition signatures to place a recall election on the ballot.
Wednesday was the deadline for recall organizers to submit nearly 1.5 million petition signatures to qualify the proposal for the ballot. However, a viral social media post is claiming that Newsom will be sending out forms for Californians to sign, which would take back their recall signature.
THE QUESTION
Can you sign a form that would take back your recall signature?
THE ANSWER
Yes, you can sign a form that would remove your name from the Newsom Recall Petition before the petition is filed and 30 days after there are enough valid names confirmed to have a recall election.
Our sources for today's verify are Kim Alexander, an expert in voter access rights, and Professor Kim Nalder, Director of the Project for an Informed Electorate.
A post, circulating on social media, claims that Newsom is sending out forms for people to sign to take back their recall signature. Alexander says any political campaign, including Newsom's, can send whatever they like to people who live in California.
“I couldn’t say whether or not the governor has chosen to do that but the voters in California have the right to withdraw a petition signature if they want to, and in order to do that they will have to contact their county registrar of voters and send in their requests with their name and address and signature,” Alexander said.
But what about the post’s claims that Newsom’s campaign will be at the grocery stores collecting signatures for a no recall?
"It’s not a very likely path for success for the governor and I don’t know of any conservative effort to get signatures or certainly to not to trick people, which is what that post seems to imply is that they are going to be fooled into accidentally withdrawing their consent and I don’t think that’s the case," Nalder said.
