His campaign will receive a last-minute boost from President Joe Biden, who will join the governor Monday, the final day before the election. While it looks likely Newsom and the Democrats will secure victory, main rival Republican Larry Elder remains popular in the state, with the latest polls showing he would enjoy more support than all other candidates combined to replace Newsom if he was voted out.
The live updates for this blog have ended.
Soledad Ursua and Chie Lunn have filed police reports with the LAPD demanding the case be filed as a hate crime, the California Globe reported.
A woman in a gorilla mask threw an egg toward Elder but struck an aid instead.
Ursua said she and Lunn, both members of the Venice Neighborhood Council, “are the only women of color on the council,” and felt targeted.
“We’re the only two women of color on the [Venice] council,” she told the Globe. “We don’t know if those eggs were meant for both of us standing next to him, or for him.”
“It’s just an extension of the big lie, the stop the steal,” Newsom told reporters after he cast his ballot in the recall election. “It’s just a remarkable thing. Four days out, the election hasn’t even happened, and now they’re all feigning election fraud.”
Newsom said these claims have no basis in fact.
“It’s not surprising, but once again disappointing that you see folks even here in California, including the president himself [Donald Trump], who asserted similar comments a few weeks back, make such outrageous statements with no basis in evidence whatsoever.”
Newsom said the process for casting his ballot was “seamless.”
Elder told the crowd he is “100 percent pro-life.”
“I’m going to govern as a governor who is 100 percent pro-life,” Elder pledged.
“In Gavin Newsom’s California, crime is surging, and people are on edge,” the CAGOP said in a statement. “Polls show crime is a top issue of concern for Californians and they disapprove of Newsom’s handling of it. Homicides rose 31 percent last year while major retailers like Walgreens and Target are closing early in response to ongoing theft.”
The CAGOP said Newsom “made California a more dangerous place to live, raise a family and own a business.”
“Crime is omnipresent, and Californians understandably feel unsafe,” the statement said. “Newsom has failed our state, and next Tuesday, voters will rebuke his soft-on-crime record when they recall him from office.”
“Senile Joe is coming out to CA to campaign for Gavin Newsom instead of handling American and Afghani hostages being held by the Taliban,” she said. “Joe stay in Washington, do your job.”
Chu joined Newsom at a rally in Los Angeles’ Chinatown.
“Seventy percent of our population are immigrants,” she said. “And so, we do have people that may have a language barrier, but also may not be all that familiar with the American system of electoral politics; they may not realize how much their vote counts, but we need to make sure that our immigrant community fully exercises our voice.”
Chu said the Asian community is rallying behind Newsom, especially after his action against the recent rise of hate crimes against Asian Americans.
“The trend of Asian Americans going from red to blue is a nationwide phenomenon,” Chu said.
“This man shut down the state to the point that a third of all small businesses closed. That’s outrageous,” he said.
Elder said many people in California are upset about the mandate from Governor Gavin Newsom requiring state workers to be vaccinated or get tested once a week and requiring everyone to wear a face mask.
“A lot of people are mad about that, nurses are mad, cops and firefighters are mad about it,” Elder said on Fox News Thursday evening
He also added that President Joe Biden’s latest vaccine mandate for federal employees will be challenged in the courts.
“There’s going to be a lawsuit, and this is going to be on a collision course up to the United States Supreme Court and ultimately the people who want freedom are going to be vindicated,” Elder said.
During a campaign event, Elder said “one of the first things I’m going to do when I become governor is repeal” Newsom’s mandate.
Elder said that he is not “anti-vaccine” and is vaccinated himself.
During a tour of a homeless encampment in Venice, California, a woman in a gorilla mask threw an egg at Elder but it did not strike him.
The LAPD told KABC that an aid approached the woman, who yelled profanities at home and then “struck the aid on the left side of his face with her open hand.”
Another man wearing a grey T-shirt also punched the aid in the back of the head, police said.
The visit was cut short, as Elder was escorted into a waiting vehicle and taken away by his security team.
Police are now seeking the public’s help in identifying both suspects.
The election will take place on September 14 and it entails two parts. Voters will be asked the following two questions on the ballot:
Do they want Newsom removed from office? Which recall candidate would they pick to replace Newsom?
The Secretary of State (SOS) website says voters are not required to answer both questions.
“Voters can vote on either one or both parts of the recall ballot. A voter can vote ’no’ to the question of removing the current elected officer from office and also select a replacement candidate.”
Those who are eligible can vote in person or by mail.
Voters can check the status of their mail-in ballot by signing up at WheresMyBallot.sos.ca.gov to receive email, text or voice call notifications about their ballot.
READ MORE: “California Recall Election: Where to Vote and How to Check Your Ballot Was Received”
Linda Wannack, a Republican voting to replace Gavin Newsom, said most of her conservative friends plan to vote in person, CNN reported.
“There were so many stories of found ballots and just the mistrust in the mail-in system that I believe people really want to hang on and vote at the polling places,” she said.
Some people believe the “big lie” of voter fraud from the 2020 election will happen during the California recall.
When CNN asked Dennis Jeffers, a Bakersfield native, about the chances of Newsom getting unseated, he responded, “Probably slim and none because they will cheat, just like they have been cheating for Democrats.”
“It was bad in the last election,” Jeffers added. “It will be bad in this one.”
Governor Gavin Newsom said Elder “thinks climate change is a myth” during a campaign event in Fresno, California.
“Floods on the East Coast,” Newsom said. “People literally drowning in their cars. He doesn’t even believe. At this critical moment in our state and nation and globe’s history, thinks climate change is a myth, thinks it’s a crock and thinks the answer to climate change is more offshore oil drilling.”
Elder clarified his stance on the issue, saying he is not a climate change denier.
“I am not a climate change denier, contrary to what my opponent’s ads say,” Elder said. “I am a climate change alarmist denier. Droughts are God-made, but shortages are manmade and we’re not preparing. We should be preparing when we have wet years to store the water to get us through the dry years we’re having right now.”
Obama appeared in an ad Newsom’s campaign released earlier this week to encourage Californians to vote against the recall effort. First shared on social media by Newsom and his Stop the Republican Recall campaign on Wednesday, the ad has launched on TV channels across the state.
READ MORE: Obama Latest Democrat to Back Newsom Ahead of Recall Election
Fewer than 2 percent remain undecided - lower than previous polls - indicating that most people have made up their minds.
No arrests have been made yet and Elder refused to label the incident racist, suggesting he is not “somebody who pulls out the race card the way Barack Obama does”.
Voter confusion is in part due to the infrequency of recall elections in California. While there have been 179 attempted recalls of state officials in California since the state adopted its recall process in 1911, only 11 have qualified for a ballot, and only six of those have been successful in removing the targeted official from office.
READ MORE: California’s Recall Ballot Questions Explained
This became a particular issue when it was revealed that while Californians were asked to stay shut indoors to spread the spread of COVID, Newsom attended a party with his friend and corporate lobbyist Jason Kinney.
Other issues include the 160,000 rough sleepers in the state, soaring house prices, and the increasingly severe droughts caused by climate change.
READ MORE: 47 People Actually Want This Job? 10 Huge Problems for California’s Next Governor
Follow Newsweek’s liveblog throughout Friday for all the latest on the campaigns.
