Saying he was humbled, and grateful, California Governor Gavin Newsom declared victory Tuesday night in his campaign to defeat a recall effort.
The vote counting is continuing, but the no vote on the recall has been winning statewide by about a two-thirds margin. CNN called the election about a half hour after the polls closed, and Newsom declared victory before 9 p.m.
"We said yes to science, we said yes to vaccines, we said yes to ending the pandemic," Newsom said as he spoke to supporters. But, he also had a caution. "We may have defeated Trump," said Newsom. "But Trump-ism is not dead in this country." He cited as examples the insurrection in Washington, D.C., and the former President's claims the recall election was rigged even before it occurred.
As of 9:30 Tuesday night, the recall effort was failing by a 63% to 37% margin in Ventura County, with about 216,000 ballots counted. In Santa Barbara County, the no vote stood at 68%, to 32% yes, with around 98,000 votes tabulated. And, in San Luis Obispo County, there was a 61% no vote, and 39% yes vote, with 53,000 votes counted.
