‘Totally Not Recalled’ + Will Dems change recall rules? + Firefighters appeal for workers comp
Good morning, and welcome to the post-Election Day edition of the A.M. Alert!
IT’S A BLOWOUT
Via Hannah Wiley...
“This has all been much ado about nothing folks.” — Sacramento political consultant Mike Madrid.
“Totally Not Recalled.” — Former Obama campaign manager David Plouffe.
“Embarrassing. Just embarrassing. @CAGOP” — Former Assembly Republican leader Chad Mayes.
“$276 million could’ve bought seven spicy potato tacos for every California resident, but instead we spent the money on a reality show pilot and bear memes.” — California Senate committee consultant Robby Sumner.
One needed only to glance at Twitter last night to know how things were going for pro-recall proponents. Not even an hour after polls closed, the Associated Press declared Gov. Gavin Newsom the victor with more than a 30% lead among the 8 million votes so far counted.
In short — it was a landslide.
“’No’ is not the only thing that was expressed tonight,” Newsom said in a Sacramento speech. “I want to focus on what we said ‘yes’ to as a state. We said ‘yes’ to science, said ‘yes’ to vaccines. We said ‘yes’ to ending this pandemic.”
“Tonight I’m humble. Grateful,” he said. “Thank you for rejecting this recall.”
Meanwhile, lead recall candidate Larry Elder, a Republican who hauled 44.2% of the votes case for candidates to succeed Newsom as of 10:13 p.m., said during a Costa Mesa election night party, “We may have lost the battle, but we are going to win the war.”
In the end, Newsom will stay in Sacramento. Democrats can take their victory lap.
But so much remains to be done. Some $275 million was spent on a recall that not only Republicans supported, but those disgruntled with surging homelessness in California, skyrocketing rent and housing prices and a widening gap between the rich and poor.
It’s been a wild ride, all.
And yet the story isn’t over yet — Lawmakers are already considering reforms to a system they deem broken and undemocratic. Assemblyman Marc Berman, D-Menlo Park, and Sen. Steve Glazer, D-Contra Costa, are scheduled to host a press conference this morning at 10 to “discuss their recall reform plans.”
Read more election coverage from The Bee here:
Gavin Newsom defeats California recall election in historic vote
Gavin Newsom used threat of COVID, Larry Elder to defeat recall
Larry Elder concedes California recall election, vows to carry on movement
‘We said yes to ending this pandemic.’ Gavin Newsom makes victory speech in Sacramento
The recall lost. Will these candidates take on Gavin Newsom again next year?
Trump falsely calls recall ‘rigged’ on Election Day. Why did he stay out of Newsom race?
CAL FIRE UNION PUSHES FOR NEWSOM’S SIGNATURE ON WORK COMP BILL
In non-recall election news, there are hundreds of bills piling up on Gov. Newsom’s desk, ready to be signed or vetoed.
One such bill, AB 872, authored by Assemblyman Jim Wood, D-Santa Rosa, is being championed by Cal Fire Local 2881, which has an ad circulating on Facebook pleading with Newsom for his signature.
AB 872 would make enhanced industrial disability leave benefits available to all rank-and-file and supervisory firefighters engaged in active fire suppression or prevention, as well as specified seasonal employees who do the same.
Those benefits are currently available to certain employees of the Department of Justice, California Highway Patrol and the Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Cal Fire firefighters are the only firefighters in the state that do not receive this “4850 time” benefit, according to an Assembly floor analysis of the bill.
AB 872 passed unanimously in both the Assembly and Senate.
In the ad by Cal Fire Local 2881, 8-year-old Cruz Sanchez says that “firefighters are getting hurt on the job and millions of flames are causing around us.”
“And one more thing: I think because they protect us, we should protect them,” Sanchez says in the ad.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Now, let’s get back to work.”
- (Still) Gov. Gavin Newsom, via Twitter.
Best of the Bee:
The U.S. Forest Service is reopening most of its California forests for public use Thursday — two days earlier than planned, via Ryan Sabalow.
Migrants applying for U.S. residency will soon be required to get the COVID vaccine first, the Department of Homeland Security said on Tuesday, via Vandana Ravikumar.
Non-Hispanic whites, Hispanics and Asian Americans saw their median household incomes decline significantly in 2020 amid the COVID-19 health crisis and economic upheaval spurred by the pandemic, according to a report released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Tuesday, via Kim Bojórquez.