Biden and Nancy come to Gavin Newsom's rescue: President and high-profile Democrats throw their support behind the California governor and urge residents to sign up to vote in next month's recall election
President Joe Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have vowed to throw their weight behind keeping Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom in office as he faces a recall election next month.
'Gov. Newsom is leading California through unprecedented crises - he's a key partner in fighting the pandemic and helping build our economy back better,' Biden tweeted Thursday night. 'To keep him on the job, registered voters should vote no on the recall election by 9/14 and keep California moving forward.'
Pelosi, a fellow Californian, also chimed in Thursday, saying of the recall, 'We respect it, but we do not like it, and we will defeat it,' according to Fox News.
At an event in San Francisco Friday, Newsom said both Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, a former California senator, would be joining him on the campaign trail.
'We are comparing schedules right now, but we anticipate the president and vice president will be here in a matter of weeks,' Newsom said, according to Deadline.
California's Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom is facing a recall election on September 14, but is expected to receive help from high-profile Democrats
President Joe Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi both pledged on Thursday to support Newsom beat the effort to oust him from office in September
On September 14, California voters will be faced with two questions - should Newsom be recalled and who should replace him.
The California Democratic Party is instructing voters to vote 'no' on the first question and leave the second question blank.
If more than 50 per cent of voters vote 'yes' on the first question, the top vote-getter then becomes governor.
This happened in 2003 when Democratic Gov. Gray Davis was recalled by 55 per cent of voters, opening the door for Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, the action movie star.
This time around, there are 46 replacement candidates on the ballot.
President Joe Biden sent out a tweet in support of Newsom Thursday night
No establishment Democrats are running against Newsom, but in the same vein as Schwarzenegger, reality television star, former Olympic athlete and transgender activist Caitlyn Jenner is in the race, running as a Republican.
Conservative talk show host Larry Elder is also on the ballot.
More traditional Republicans are also taking on Newsom including former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, former gubernatorial candidate John Cox - who lost to Newsom in 2018 - state Assemblymember Kevin Kiley and former Rep. Doug Ose.
Newsom got in trouble politically over the slew of restrictions he enacted to combat the coronavirus. At the same time, the governor got caught attending a birthday party at the tony French Laundry restaurant in the Napa Valley, when he was advising Californians to stay home.
A judge also granted an extension to recall supporters, allowing them more time to gather signatures, which is how Newsom is now on the ballot.
Vote-by-mail ballots start getting sent out on August 16.