California Gov. Gavin Newsom won his recall election in 2021 by 24 points. This is the same margin as when he won the election of 2018. He spent more than $9 per voter to keep his job, compared to $6 per voter to get it.
I ran in the recall election. I finished first among 46 “replacement candidates” with 3.5 million votes. I carried 57 of California’s 56 counties and lost San Francisco County by only 149 votes. My team raised $22,000,000 in less than eight weeks. We were outspent by Newsom who received support from the Hollywood executives, public-sector unions and entertainment figures. The news media including the Los Angeles Times declined to invite me to my radio show to defend the slur.
The Times’ analysis of the recall was published after the election. It repeated the same talking points almost verbatim. Most recently, Hailey Branson–Potts wrote that Elder — a black Republican who denied the existence systemic anti-black racism and made derogatory remarks against women, and once called Trump ‘almost Godsent’ — was Newsom’s perfect foil.
Let’s look at this.
Consider first the electoral landscape in California. Registered Democrats and independents are 3 to 1 in favor of Republicans. California’s independents are more likely to vote Democrat. Since 2006, no Republican has won the California state office, including male and female candidates, as well as those “of colour”.
Second, Brian Dahle, a respected Republican State Senator, is Newsom’s reelection rival. He never “denied” the existence of systemic black racism, made no “derogatory comments about women”, never called Trump “almost God-sent” or said he believes Trump should run for office in 2024. Newsom still referred to Dahle as “Trump through-and-through.” Polling data from September showed that Dahle was down by almost 30 points with the election just over a month away. An even more “perfect foil for Newsom”?
Third, I denial of “the existence systemic anti-black racism” The Times does not provide any examples of alleged anti-black systemic racist behavior that it suggests should be acknowledged. Studies show that cops are less likely to use deadly force against blacks as opposed to whites. It’s not the police. Is it rabidly Left-wing institutions such as academia, the media and Big Tech? Not.
Concerning my “derogatory comment” about women, media quoted an article I wrote in 2000, where I stated that women care more about education, social security, and health care than men. I spoke about a study done by a left-leaning female University of Pennsylvania professor that found that women knew more about politics than men in one of 25 questions. According to the professor, who is still teaching there, the reason women know less about politics than men is because women watch more local TV news than men. She stated that “watching local news makes it dumber.” Media translated this into “Elder thinks that women are stupid.”
What do you think about Trump being “almost God-sent”? Did I call him that? Referring to God, to borrow a term used by the Left, triggers the secular media. If you are going to attack me for supporting Trump, Charles Manson is the California Left’s most hated public figure. He’s also dead.
Branson-Potts was invited to my TV show to defend my “Elder was a perfect foil” analysis about my defeat. She declined.
Larry Elder is a nationally syndicated radio talk-show host and best-selling author. Visit www.LarryElder.com to learn more about Larry Elder or become an “Elderado”. Follow Larry Elder on Twitter @larryelder. Visit www.creators.com to see cartoonists and writers from Creators Syndicate.
