CALIFORNIA, USA — Republicans aim at GOP base in 1st California recall debate
Four Republican candidates skirmished in their first debate as they head toward California's Sept. 14 recall election that could remove Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom from office. The two best known candidates — Caitlyn Jenner and conservative talk radio host Larry Elder — weren't participating.
The four candidates — U.S. Rep. Doug Ose, John Cox, Kevin Kiley and Kevin Faulconer — kept much of their criticism focused on Newsom while attempting to distinguish themselves from their rivals. The televised debate at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library in Orange County, California, represented a chance for the candidates to connect with voters statewide.
First Republican Debate of Recall
Four Republicans are heading into their first debate as they campaign for California's Sept. 14 recall election that could remove Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom from office. The contest at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library in Orange County, California, will present the candidates with a choice: whether to pile up on Newsom or try to undercut each other in front of a statewide TV audience. The two best known candidates — Caitlyn Jenner and conservative talk radio host Larry Elder — aren't participating. Former U.S. Rep. Doug Ose says he'll argue his experience sets him apart from rivals John Cox, Kevin Kiley and Kevin Faulconer.
Watch on Fox11's Facebook page:
California Democrats seize on Elder’s ‘$0 minimum wage’ statement
The California Democratic Party is pouncing on a statement conservative radio host Larry Elder made about the concept of a minimum wage.
“The ideal minimum wage is $0.00,” Elder said during an interview with the Sacramento Bee. He made the comment in regard to jobs, saying he believed an increased minimum wage is burdensome to businesses.
Elder suggested the employer and employee could agree on the price of labor.
In a statement referencing the interview, the California Democratic Party wrote, “This is the candidate currently leading the polls if Republicans are successful in recalling Governor @GavinNewsom. Vote NO on the Republican recall by September 14. #stoptherepublicanrecall”
Judge: California governor OK to brand recall 'Republican'
A judge says California Gov. Gavin Newsom can refer to the recall against him as a Republican effort in the state's official voter guide.
Sacramento Superior Court Judge Laurie M. Earl's tentative ruling Wednesday comes hours before the parties were set to appear in court.
Republicans who led the effort to place the recall on the ballot filed a lawsuit saying some of Newsom's statements in the voter guide linking the effort to Republicans were false or misleading.
Earl says they failed to prove the statements were outright false.
The ruling does not take effect until she issues a final decision after hearing arguments from both sides.
First look at Governor Newsom recall election ballot
In the next week, California registered voters will receive a sample ballot in the mail on the Governor Newsom recall election.
Recall rallies continue across the state and in San Diego County.
The anti-recall campaign is working on momentum. Democrats double the registration of GOP statewide so there's a campaign to energize blue voters to get out of the vote.
The San Diego County Registrar of Voters shared a first look at the sample ballot that shows the two questions on the ballot.
How would a Republican Party endorsement affect the recall?
There is a little more than a month to go until the California gubernatorial recall election, and Republican candidates continue to jockey for the best position to unseat Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sept. 14.
So far, the Republican Party has not officially endorsed any of the two dozen candidates that will appear on the ballot. The party delegates will hold a virtual vote on Aug. 7, and if any candidate can receive at least 60% of the vote they’ll receive the endorsement. The question is, how much would it actually matter?
The Public Party Institute of California (PPIC) looked into the prospect and found that the delegate vote could have a profound impact on whoever gets the hypothetical endorsement -- possibly as much as 3 or 4 percentage points among all candidates. And if a plurality of voters choose “yes” on question 1, those few points could be enough to install the next Governor of California.
Key Dates
- Aug. 4 - Republican recall candidates debate
- Aug. 7 - Republican Party virtual delegate vote
- Aug. 16 - First day to vote by mail
- August 30 - Last day to register to vote
- Sept. 14 - Recall election day
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
Read more ABC10 stories about the recall: