California Recall Election
~ October 7, 2003 ~
Governor AHNOLD of CALL-EE-FORNIA
I followed this one pretty carefully. It was the most fun since the Bush/Gore race in November 2000. I think that I first heard of this recall in about April. All the radio commentators laughed it off as did Gray Davis. I knew it was important when the recall collected sufficient signatures to make a recall election possible. I thought that Davis might survive recall. But then Arnold announced, and I sensed that all was lost for the democratic governor. My "NO on RECALL and YES on BUSTEMONTE", carried Marin County, but not the rest of the state.
As soon as the polls closed in California at 8 p.m. PST, several major TV networks including CNN, Fox News, CBS and MSNBC projected that voters had decided to recall Davis and replace him with Schwarzenegger.
Once confirmed by official tabulations, Davis would become the first governor recalled in California history, ending his tenure as chief executive of the nation's largest state.
Schwarzenegger, in his first run for public office, used an energetic, well-managed campaign with a platform based on straightening out the state's economy and ending the alleged influence of special interest groups in the capital.
The actor's run capitalized on voter anger over vehicle registration taxes, allowing illegal immigrants to obtain drivers' licenses, and the state budget.
Governor AHNOLD of CALL-EE-FORNIA
I followed this one pretty carefully. It was the most fun since the Bush/Gore race in November 2000. I think that I first heard of this recall in about April. All the radio commentators laughed it off as did Gray Davis. I knew it was important when the recall collected sufficient signatures to make a recall election possible. I thought that Davis might survive recall. But then Arnold announced, and I sensed that all was lost for the democratic governor. My "NO on RECALL and YES on BUSTEMONTE", carried Marin County, but not the rest of the state.
As soon as the polls closed in California at 8 p.m. PST, several major TV networks including CNN, Fox News, CBS and MSNBC projected that voters had decided to recall Davis and replace him with Schwarzenegger.
Once confirmed by official tabulations, Davis would become the first governor recalled in California history, ending his tenure as chief executive of the nation's largest state.
Schwarzenegger, in his first run for public office, used an energetic, well-managed campaign with a platform based on straightening out the state's economy and ending the alleged influence of special interest groups in the capital. The actor's run capitalized on voter anger over vehicle registration taxes, allowing illegal immigrants to obtain drivers' licenses, and the state budget.