Newsom, recall organizers in court over his ballot language

Gov. Gavin Newsom and recall organizers are going to court again.

Lead organizer Orrin Heatlie has sued Secretary of State Shirley Weber to bar Newsom's use of ballot language referring to "the Republican recall." Heatlie v. Weber, 34-2021-80003690-CU-WM-GDS (Sac. Super. Ct., filed July 30, 2021).

"As the evidence submitted herewith makes very clear, the recall is not - as Newsom repeatedly falsely states in the Newsom Recall Argument - a 'Republican recall" or "an attempt by national Republicans and Trump supporters" to "grab power" from Newsom," wrote attorney Eric P. Early, in a an amended complaint filed Sunday. "The constitutional recall has instead been supported by Californians of all political persuasions. Moreover, nearly half of the gubernatorial candidates certified by the secretary of state to run against Newsom are not even Republicans."

"The law prevents false or misleading statements from being included in the guide and we assert that Newsom's proposed statement includes false and misleading language," wrote the managing partner of Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae LLP. "The guide is not the equivalent of Newsom's supporters' campaign commercials that have been airing and must not be treated as such."

"The lawsuit is totally baseless," said Newsom campaign spokesman Nathan Click. "The facts are clear. This is a partisan Republican recall, one that was launched by Republicans like Heatlie . . . and funded almost exclusively by Republican donors, the RNC and allies of Donald Trump. Republicans know they can't win in a normal election year, so they are trying to force a special election and grab power."

The complaint, which also names Acting California State Printer Brian Jamison, wants the objectionable phrases removed from official state ballot materials voters will be sent ahead of the Sept. 14 recall vote. The complaint included declarations from several self-declared recall supporters who identify as Democrats, Libertarians, or in one case a "transwoman" and "Bernie Sanders supporter."

Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Laurie M. Earl scheduled a hearing for Wednesday. Earl is the same judge who ruled last month that conservative talk show host Larry Elder could not be barred from the ballot. She found Elder substantially complied with a 2019 law requiring candidates for governor to submit five years of tax returns and that the law did not even apply to the recall.