Larry Elder’s California Recall Rise Has Even Republicans Uneasy
Larry Elder’s California Recall Rise Has Even Republicans Uneasy
(Bloomberg) -- A popular conservative radio talk show host’s entry into California’s gubernatorial recall race has upended predictions for the outcome as both Democrats and some Republicans now work to defeat him.
Syndicated radio personality Larry Elder, 69, announced six weeks ago his bid to replace Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom in the Sept. 14 recall election, months after other Republicans began throwing their hats in the ring. Polls show a tight race as GOP voters are particularly galvanized, raising the prospect of a Newsom defeat in the nation’s most populous state.
Known as the “Sage from South Central” to fans, Elder has quickly surpassed other candidates in polls, despite coming under fire for past sexist remarks and controversial policy ideas. He’s raised money at a fast clip from donors around the country, and nabbed endorsements from action-film star Chuck Norris, playwright David Mamet, and some members of Congress. If elected, Elder would become the state’s first Black governor and the first Republican since Arnold Schwarzenegger, who served two terms after the 2003 recall of Democrat Gray Davis. Elder prefers to downplay those potential accomplishments.
“I’m not running to be the first this, first that, first anything,” Elder said in an interview. “I’m running to be the best governor I could possibly be.”
His name recognition after 30 years in media helps differentiate Elder in a sea of 46 candidates. On policy, Elder’s views are often standard Republican talking points. He opposes mandates for masking and vaccines against coronavirus, but would let businesses and local municipalities set their own rules.
As governor, he would reduce spending on renewable energy to help pay for more forest-thinning to mitigate wildfires. He’s committed to appointing a Republican to the U.S. Senate should Democrat Dianne Feinstein, 88, not finish her term through 2024. He supports Donald Trump, but isn’t holding his breath for an endorsement from the former president.
“I’m anti-rolling brownouts, I’m anti-high cost of living. I’m anti-being against science, shutting down this state,” Elder said.
While Elder isn’t directly competing with Newsom, the governor’s campaign has crystallized the media personality as the likely winner if Democratic turnout is low. “He’s the absolutely perfect foil for Newsom’s strategy of frightening supporters to the polls,” said Dan Schnur, a former spokesman for California Governor Pete Wilson who now teaches political communication at several California universities.
But evidence of his past and present views have exposed weaknesses that Elder’s critics are eager to exploit. Last week, Elder’s former fiancee Alexandra Datig told Politico that she ended the engagement after he took out a firearm during an argument, urging voters to pick former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer in the recall.
Elder has made statements on his radio show and other media that put him at odds with the state’s Democratic majority. He advocates for a $0 minimum wage, and has said women should tolerate crude remarks from men at work and that bosses should be able to ask female employees whether they plan to have children. He also used a racial slur in a comedy routine and called for the repeal of the Americans with Disabilities Act that he views as a burden on small businesses.
“Imagine waking up on the morning of September 15th to find out Gavin Newsom has been recalled and Larry Elder will be the next governor of California,” fundraisers for Newsom wrote in a recent email. “It is terrifying to consider.”
Elder has denied Datig’s account of the former couple’s relationship. His campaign has said he used racist language in a skit in a satirical impression of F. Lee Bailey, an attorney for O.J. Simpson during his murder trial. And Elder has said his past remarks do not reflect the substance of his current platform.
“Those things are low priority, in fact no priority” in the campaign, Elder said. “It’s nothing more than my overall philosophy that government ought not be butting into a private business.”
Recent polls show that California’s Republicans are more likely to vote in the election than Democrats, though registered Democrats outnumber GOP voters nearly two-to-one in the state. A CBS News/YouGov poll of 1,856 adults between Aug. 6 and Aug. 12 found 82% of conservative voters were very motivated to vote in the election, compared to 64% of liberal voters.
That same poll showed Elder leading the candidates running in the recall, with 23% of respondents saying they would choose him. Under the state’s recall rules, if a majority of voters choose to oust Newsom, the replacement candidate with the most votes wins.
Elder’s rise has sparked a shift among Republican contenders, who until recently directed their ire at Newsom. He’s quickly outpaced the fundraising of two early frontrunners in the race -- 2018 gubernatorial candidate John Cox and Faulconer -- collecting at least $7 million in less than two months. Cox has added roughly $10.4 million to his war chest since the start of the year, with most of it coming from his own pocket, and Faulconer has gathered about $4 million, according to state campaign finance filings.
Drop Out
Faulconer was the first to take on Elder’s past comments on women. At a debate last week, he called out a 21-year-old opinion piece in which Elder said “women know less than men about political issues, economics, and current events.” Another candidate, reality television star Caitlyn Jenner, piled on, with both saying Elder should drop out of the race.
Without a prominent Democrat on the ballot, the second question of the recall functions like a Republican primary election, said Rob Stutzman, a former communications aide for Schwarzenegger. While Faulconer may not be conservative enough to win a Republican primary, his attacks on Elder could be an appeal to Democrats who will vote ‘no’ on the recall but still pick a candidate in case Newsom is removed, Stutzman said.
After the wave of headlines calling into question Elder’s views and behavior, he’s pitching a gentler version of himself, that of a governor who would not be an adversary to the Biden administration and would reason with the Democratic super-majority in the California legislature.
“I’m not some wild-eyed guy with horns and a tail,” he said. “That’s why I think, in my opinion, they’re so afraid of me.”
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