Gov. Gavin Newsom only has nine days to convince Californians he deserves to keep his job. Now, some of the largest Democrats nationwide are traveling to Golden State to help the governor defend his case.
Three years after his first term at the helm of the nation’s most populous state, Newsom is struggling to keep his job ahead of a withdrawal vote he has criticized as a Republican partisan effort.
In an attempt to energize her base, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren kicked off a weekend of campaign breaks for Culver City Governor on Saturday, while Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar joins Newsom at a rally in Southern California on Sunday. And after canceling a campaign trip last week, Vice President Kamala Harris is configured to travel Wednesday in the Bay Area, according to Symone Sanders, Harris’s chief spokeswoman.
“I’m very honored, but more importantly, it’s these strong women, and I think that’s something these three have in common,” Newsom said in a sit-in interview Friday with ABC News ’Zohreen Shah.
The governor added that Warren’s support showed how high the stakes are for the withdrawal.
“The consequences of turning California into red and not blue are profound in terms of the senator’s agenda, [President Joe] Biden is moving forward, ”Newsom said.
The results of the withdrawal (a two-part vote asking voters if they want to get the governor back and, if so, with whom) may depend on both apathy and Newsom’s record in office.
“At the end of the day, if you can get more Democrats out, it’ll be fine,” Michelle Jeung, a Democratic strategist and partner at women-led political research firm MJE Strategies, told ABC News. “They need the national figures, because they don’t necessarily feel very motivated by Gavin himself.”
Conservative radio presenter Larry Elder is the leader among Newsom opponents, according to FiveThirtyEight poll tracker, though he is only polling 22.6%. But in a fractured field of alternatives to Newsom, including YouTube star Kevin Paffrath, 29; businessman John Cox, who lost to Newsom in the 2018 election; and former Olympic and reality star Caitlyn Jenner – Elder could still be elected governor if more than 50% of voters vote to regain the governor.
Ying Ma, Elder’s communications director, criticized Newsom’s effort to call for national reinforcements.
“Involving other people in trying to rescue him simply shows that he has problems and is desperately afraid of being fired from his post very soon,” Ma told ABC News.
The push to excite Californians around Newsom comes with recent polls showing a narrow race: only 52.1% of voters say they will vote to keep it up, according to the FiveThirtyEight poll average.
The confronted governor, however, has had promising news this week. A new poll by the California Institute of Public Policy showed that 58% of likely voters will vote “no” for the withdrawal.
“[We’re] taking nothing for granted, “Newsom told ABC News.
Warren, who, like Klobuchar and Harris, ran for president in 2020, argued that he is in California because “right now there are fights at the state level.”
“Look at Texas: a governor who works hard to remove a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body and block access to abortion,” Warren said, referring to the recently enacted law on abortion. abortion. “Look at what’s happening in Florida: a governor who says that when public schools want to try to protect children and teachers with masks, he’ll cut off their funding.”
Both the governor and senator made sure to stress that the outcome of this withdrawal would not only affect the 40 million Americans living in California, but would have profound consequences across the country when Democrats look to 2022 with a Senate divided and a narrow majority in the house.
“This is about democracy,” explained Warren, who added a warning to Californians who were not motivated to vote because they think Newsom has an infallible victory. “If they don’t show up, the people of California could wake up tomorrow and Larry Elder could be their governor and the rights that have so long defined California for so long.”
When asked about the different decisions he could have made and which could have prevented the race from being so close, Newsom said: “The last 18 months have been tough for everyone … I try to focus on the our resistance, that people now have their backs, matter, we care. “
He added: “We all need to raise the bar of expectation in terms of the work we do and our support for people who are still struggling and falling behind.”