Larry Elder has hinted at a 2022 run, but his campaign told Newsweek he is focused for now on winning California’s recall election.
Republican Larry Elder is expected to become the new leader of California if a majority of voters decide to remove sitting Governor Gavin Newsom from office in today’s gubernatorial recall election. Elder, a conservative radio host who launched his gubernatorial campaign in July, has led the field of 46 recall candidates in most polls conducted over the last few months, with many voter surveys estimating his lead to be in the double digits over fellow Republicans such as businessman John Cox, former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, state assemblyman Kevin Kiley and reality television personality Caitlyn Jenner. If Newsom is ousted, Elder could become the first Republican in a decade to lead California, where registered Democrats outnumber registered Republicans nearly two to one. The most recent Republican to do so was Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was named governor following California’s last gubernatorial recall election in 2003. When former Democratic Governor Gray Davis was removed that year, the divide between the state’s number of registered Democrats and Republicans was significantly smaller. Polls conducted in the weeks following Elder’s campaign launch suggested Californians were relatively split on the decision of removing Newsom from office. But those numbers shifted in Newsom’s favor over the last month, with support for the recall appearing to decline as Democrats grew motivated to keep Newsom in office for the remainder of his term.
