Davis recall scenario (hypothetical)

[election_2004]

I keep hearing that California Democrats don't want to put up *ANYONE* from their party as a possible replacement for Gray Davis, even if he does get recalled by the voters in the end.

May I ask: what is the strategy there, if Democrats in California want to keep the Governor's Mansion so badly?

Take a look at what a sample recall ballot could look like:

*****************

Do you wish to recall Govenor Gray Davis.

Yes

No


In the event that Governor Gray Davis is recalled, select the candidate you wish to replace him.

1. Peter Camejo (Gr)

2. Dianne Feinstein (D)

3. Mike Huffington (R)

4. Darrell Issa (R)

5. Arnold Schwarzanegger (R)

6. Lucifer - - er, I mean, Bill Simon (R)

What are the chances of a Republican (other than Arnold) becoming Governor, especially if you have a Green and a Democrat listed (and at the top of an alphabetical ballot, to boot)?

It seems as though the Democrats should be uniting behind one Democratic alternative to Davis in the event that Davis is recalled?

So what's this about: party loyalty or sheer stupidity? - - although sometimes they can be one and the same.

[thom1102]

1. That probably is their strategy...

But right now they are trying to keep supporting Davis to prevent undermining him. As the recall gets closer, if Davis fails to rouse significant support, I think that you will see exactly this happen.

[DUreader]

2. According to 1 duer the CA Dem. Party is saying you cant vote if

you vote no recall

why would they be spreading dis/mis info?

[ronnykmarshall]

6. WRONG!

I CAN vote for the replacement even if you vote no.

What I read is that if you DON'T vote on the first question, yes or no to recall, still CAN vote for the replacement.

Confused? Hell yeah!

[twilight]

7. that might have be me

I heard this from Shelley himself when they were interviewing him about the recall voting process.

He said there were two questions to be on the ballot:

1. Should Gray Davis be recalled? yes or no

2. If you vote yes on question #1 you are to fill in the blank as to who you think should be the Governor. There is no "list" of candidates apparently.

It sounds like according to the recent judicial decision that they may have to change the ballot so that if Davis is recalled, you will have the opportunity to select another person for the job.

I agree that this should be the case. This is a very old and confusing law dating to 1910. A lot of things have changed since 1910 needless to say.

In any case, I hope that Gray Davis keeps his job which he won by being reelected in Nov. 2002!

:dem:

[election_2004]

3. ooops, Correction

After reading some of the posts further down the list, replace Mike Huffington with his wife Arianna (I didn't realize that she was the one considering a gubernatorial run in Cali)

[NewJerseyDem]

5. Both are

Both Michael and Arianna are considering a run.

[NewJerseyDem]

4. I disagree

If Feinstein is on the ballot than Davis is dead. Feinstein will than probably win. That is assuming that Feinstein wants to run. She probably doesn't want to have to deal with a massive budget deficit. I would think she would rather be a popular senator with increasing seniority and influence.

This way they send a message that you either vote for Davis or you get a republican governor. Perhaps, a lot of democrats will then vote for davis when they realize their other option sucks.

Also, Riordan can win even if there are democrats on the ballot. He is a moderate and would have probably beaten Davis and may very well win if he is on the ballot. I think that maybe a democrat should run if Riordan runs because I think he will win.

[whoYaCallinAlib]

8. I agree with NewJerseyDem

Feinstein would mop the floor with Davis's ass. My activist brother lives in San Francisco and he claims Diane is very popular across California. Much, much, much more popular than Feinstein. He says people are so pissed off at Davis because he painted a completely different picture of California's financial situation during the election. It was only after the election that he came clean with the voters. They feel he hoodwinked them.

[sungkathak]

9. 'kill Davis softly'

Recall troops urged by GOP consultant to 'kill Davis softly'

Marc Sandalow, Washington Bureau Chief
Friday, July 18, 2003

Washington -- A private memo from a prominent Republican strategist offers a rare glimpse at the bare-knuckle approaches being considered to oust Gov. Gray Davis, outlining numerous ways to "kill Davis softly" in the recall effort without turning the unpopular governor into a sympathetic figure.

"While it is important to trash the governor," reads the blunt, 17-page memo from Virginia-based communications expert Frank Luntz, "it should be done in the context of regret, sadness and balance."
The internal memo dated July 10 was commissioned by Rep. Darrell Issa's Rescue California committee, which has led the effort to put the unprecedented recall of California's governor on the ballot. The committee financed by Issa, R-Vista (San Diego County) and two other pro-recall groups say they have gathered more than 1.6 million signatures in support of their effort -- far more than needed to put the recall to a vote.
17 WAYS TO UNSEAT DAVIS
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2003/07/18/MN251327.DTL#sections