Republicans Launch Another Recall Attempt Against California Gov. Newsom

Another effort to recall California Gov. Gavin Newsom is underway, just three years after a previous attempt to oust the Democrat from office crashed and burned with voters.

The plan to serve the governor with official recall papers Monday was first reported by Politico. The group behind the effort, Rescue California, shared the article on social media, vowing: “We did it before. We will do it again.”

The citizen-led group is the same one that managed to get a Newsom recall effort on the ballot in 2021, which failed with around 38% of the vote. He won reelection the following year.

“Gavin Newsom has abandoned the state to advance his presidential ambitions, leaving behind a $73 billion budget deficit and a public safety, immigration and education crisis,” Anne Dunsmore, the campaign’s director, told Politico.

Dunsmore did not immediately return HuffPost’s request for comment.

Newsom dismissed the effort as a squandering of resources.

“Trump Republicans are launching another wasteful recall campaign to distract us from the existential fight for democracy and reproductive freedom. We will defeat them,” he posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The Democratic Governors Association said Monday it’s backing Newsom, with executive director Meghan Meehan-Draper echoing the governor on the effort’s potential to waste precious resources.

“Just like the last time, GOP extremists have signed themselves up for what will be a massive waste of time, energy, and resources that ultimately fails,” she said.

The special recall election in 2021 cost Californians more than $200 million, election officials said. That doesn’t take into account the tens of millions candidates raised to spend on their campaigns.

The Rescue California