CA Recall Voting Guide: How To Vote, Candidate Profiles & More

CALIFORNIA — Californian voters this week will decide the fate of first-term Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom as they cast their final ballots in the gubernatorial recall election, which has gripped headlines for months and cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars.

The highly anticipated election — which sent the governor back on the campaign trail before his term was up — will culminate Tuesday. Those who haven't already cast their ballots by mail will head to vote centers and polling places this week.

For the last several months, Californians have been introduced to dozens of gubernatorial hopefuls, with just a handful of Republicans and perhaps one Democrat making any impression. There have been lawsuits over the process of the recall and disputes about how the ballot should be laid out. There was plenty of infighting among Republican candidates, while the recall campaign mostly saw voter apathy among Democrats.

So it's not surprising if this particularly confusing election, unfolding in the midst of California's ongoing coronavirus pandemic, has prompted some head-scratching. Here's what you need to know.

When Is Election Day?

Election day is set for Tuesday, but most Californians have already received their ballots in the mail.

How Can I Vote?

Every registered voter in California already received a recall election ballot, and there are ballot drop boxes throughout each of California's 58 counties in which to deposit them. Please check your county or city website to find a ballot box near you.

The deadline to register online for the election has passed, but Californians can still take advantage of same-day registration at a polling place or vote center.

Those who would like to vote in person or sign up for same-day voter registration can search on their county website for polling locations. Accessible voting locations are open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Monday and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on election day.

In-person voting locations will offer same-day voter registration, replacement ballots, accessible voting machines and language assistance for those who need it.

Check your voter registration status here.

Can I Track My Ballot?

Yes. The state allows voters to sign up to track a ballot throughout the process.

Who Has Already Voted?

In the Golden State, 8,288,898 ballots have already been returned, accounting for 37 percent of the 22,270,958 ballots issued, according to numbers from Political Data Inc. As of Monday afternoon, more Democrats in the state have mailed in a ballot, turning in more than 10 million, while Republicans have mailed in more than 5 million.

How Could Newsom Be Recalled?

On the recall ballot, voters are asked whether Newsom should be recalled and who should replace him. If more than 50 percent of voters cast a ballot to recall Newsom, the replacement candidate with the largest share of votes will win the governor's seat.

Who's Running?

The recall contest pits 45 candidates against Newsom, including 23 Republicans, nine Democrats and 13 others of alternate or no party preference. That group shrank from 46 total candidates after former U.S. Rep. Doug Ose (R) withdrew his bid for governor after having a heart attack.

Both the state's Republican and Democratic parties decided not to endorse a front-runner in the special election. For the GOP, delegates feared that rallying behind a particular front-runner could alienate voters who are passionate about a particular candidate.

While there are a handful of Republican hopefuls who have energized voters and gained traction recently, most Democrats are still standing squarely behind Newsom, despite a few lesser-known Democrats who will appear on the ballot.

Democrats are also urging voters to leave blank question two — where voters can select a replacement candidate — amid a lawsuit and allegations that California's recall process is flawed. Read more about that here.

Can Voters Write In Candidates?

As it turns out, Californians won't be able to jot down just any name on the ballot. The state recently released an official list of certified candidates that voters will be able to write in. Any other written names will not be counted.

The list of seven names, released Friday, included two Democrats, one Republican and three others with no party designation, according to Secretary of State Shirley Weber's office. None of the candidates are prominent or well known.

The names released by the secretary of state's office who do not have a ballot designation are as follows.

• Roxanne, Democrat.
• Stacy Smith, Democrat.
• Major Williams, Republican.
• Thuy E. Hugens, American Indepedent.
• Miki Habryn, no party preference.
• Vince Lundgren, no party preference.
• Vivek B. Mohan, no party preference.

Who Are The Top Candidates?

1. Larry Elder

Talk show host Larry Elder may have entered the game a bit later than other recall hopefuls, but he quickly ascended to the top of the Republican candidate list in terms of voter popularity. He also fortified his ascent by raising a strong $4.5 million for his campaign in just 19 days, government records showed.

Read his candidate profile from CalMatters: Meet Larry Elder

2. Kevin Faulconer

Former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer was identified as the more moderate choice among the other Republican candidates. He's also right on Elder's heels in terms of how much money he's collected for his campaign.

Read his candidate profile from CalMatters: Meet Kevin Faulconer

3. John Cox

Businessman John Cox, who lost to Newsom by a landslide in an earlier election, generated a fair amount of buzz this election season. So far, he's dubbed himself "the beast," campaigned with a live bear and raised $418,000 in campaign funds through the end of July.

Read his candidate profile from CalMatters: Meet John Cox

4. Kevin Kiley

Assemblyman Kevin Kiley may be one of Newsom's loudest critics on social media, receiving hundreds of retweets and likes for his jabs at the progressive governor. At 36, he's also the youngest among the most prominent Republican recall candidates. On Aug. 24, Kiley was endorsed by Ose, who dropped out of the race the week before after suffering a heart attack.

Read his candidate profile from CalMatters: Meet Kevin Kiley

5. Caitlyn Jenner

Former Olympic athlete turned reality television star Caitlyn Jenner was arguably Newsom's most famous contender, but recent polls showed her trailing all other candidates, with 3 to 4 percent of support from respondents in two recent surveys. Jenner reported raising nearly $750,000 through the end of July, ending up with about $22,000 on hand after expenses. But the campaign was also carrying more than $150,000 in debt.

Read her candidate profile from CalMatters: Meet Caitlyn Jenner

6. Kevin Paffrath

Recent polls showed that 29-year-old YouTube star Kevin Paffrath could be the top Democratic contender — he polls just under Elder— for Newsom's post.

It’s a long shot, but Paffrath could unseat the governor solely based on the fact that he has nearly 1.7 million followers to his video channel, where he offers financial advice.

Read his candidate profile from CalMatters: Meet Kevin Paffrath

Read more recall candidate profiles from Patch:

• CA Recall Candidate Profile: Meet Adam Papagan
  
• CA Recall Candidate Profile: Meet Denver Stoner
  
• CA Recall Candidate Profile: Meet Nickolas Wildstar
  
• CA Recall Candidate Profile: Meet James G. Hanink
  
• CA Recall Candidate Profile: Meet Heather Collins
  
• CA Recall Candidate Profile: Meet Sam Gallucci

Who Is Projected To Win?

For a moment, things were not looking good in the polls for Newsom as he fought against an intensifying recall election to push him from his post. But a recent poll suggested that he may have the election in the bag after all.

More than 60 percent of likely voters in a University of California, Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll opposed recalling the first-term governor. Just 38.5 percent wanted to unseat him, and 2 percent were undecided in the new poll, which was published Friday. The survey was co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times.

One month earlier, the same pollster showed Newsom with a slim margin in the recall vote. Other California polls revealed similar worrying signs for the Democratic governor.

Should Newsom receive enough votes to be recalled, recent polls indicated that his likely replacement could be Elder. Elder has become the party’s front-runner, leading polls for months.

In a recent poll from UC Berkeley, Elder was the clear leading choice for people planning to vote for a recall candidate in the election, with a 28 percentage point lead over the next closest candidate.

READ MORE: California Recall: Newsom Well Positioned As Elder Cries Foul

Where Did The Recall Effort Begin?

During the course of the pandemic, schools were shuttered for more than a year, and residents of the most populous state were asked to remain under a stricter set of coronavirus rules than most other states. At the height of it all, Newsom was spotted at a fancy Napa restaurant, The French Laundry, dining with a group of friends in the same week he told Californians to stay home.

The recall effort technically sprouted as a grassroots effort before the pandemic severely affected Californians. It was launched by Orrin Heatlie, a retired sheriff's sergeant.

"I'm participating in something that is monumental and historic, and it's something that, you know, this country was founded on," he told The Desert Sun. "We're bringing government back to represent the people."

Newsom has pushed back against the effort to unseat him, arguing that the campaign was one backed by extremists, supporters of former President Donald Trump and those against the coronavirus vaccines.

"TOMORROW we can show the rest of the nation that we won't let Republicans drag our state backward," Newsom tweeted on Monday. "Make sure your voice is heard. VOTE NO."

What Is A Recall?

It may feel unprecedented, but this is not the first time a recall of a California governor has been attempted. There have been 55 recall attempts since 1913; just two of them actually qualified for the ballot: the recall of former Gov. Gray Davis and now of Newsom.

The only successful recall attempt in state history unseated Davis in 2003 and replaced him with "The Terminator" star Arnold Schwarzenegger, who served as the state's 38th governor until 2011. It was the last time a Republican was governor of California.

California has had recall elections as part of its political system since 1911. The process allowed the public to attempt to remove an elected public official from office before the end of his or her term. Before a recall election can be initiated, a certain number of voters must sign a recall petition within a specified amount of time.

Read more about California's gubernatorial recall election:

• California Recall Fueled By A Dinner, A Ruling On Same Day
• Larry Elder Ignites Voter Fraud Initiative Ahead Of Election
  
• California Recall: Where To Vote In Person
  
• Police Scramble To Find Larry Elder Egger
  
• Why The Recall Election Is Unlikely To Lead To California's First Female Governor
  
• Newsom Recall: The Power Of Polls
  
• Polling Error: How One Survey Changed The Newsom Recall Campaign
  
• Larry Elder Faces Claims Of Abuse, Financial Misrepresentation
• CA Recall: Newsom Lambasts Elder On Campaign Trail
• Lawsuit Argues California Recall Is Unconstitutional
• California Republicans Skip Recall Candidate Endorsement
• Inside Larry Elder's Focus On Race
• A Serious Man: Can Kevin Faulconer Run For Governor Without The Gimmicks?
• Follow The Money: Gavin Newsom Recall Edition
• Total Recall: An Illustrated Guide To The Newsom Recall