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There is a legal and relatively quick way to thwart the recall of Gov. Grey Davis. If a political organization could credibly demonstrate to the California electorate before the election that it had the support (in the form of 1 million signed pledges) and resources (in the form of a trust fund of at least $1 million) to launch a successful drive for a SECOND RECALL ELECTION in the event (a) Gov. Davis is voted out of office on Question 1 and (b) any other candidate is vote into office on Question 2 with less votes than Gov. Davis received on Question 1, then the inevitability of a second recall election would certainly dissuade most voters from voting Yes on Question 1.
Since it takes a petition of only roughly 900,000 registered voters to launch a recall election, it should be possible to garner that many signatures from the growing movement of voters who view the current California Recall as a threat to democracy--whatever their opinions of Grey Davis may be. The key to thwarting the first recall of Davis is to credibly establish the inevitability of a second recall election before October 7. It must be clear to all California voters that a second recall election is not an empty threat, but a certainty that would be triggered by the recall of Gov. Davis and the election of any other candidate with less votes than Davis received on Question 1.
What would a second recall election accomplish?
1. It would force the new governor to establish his mandate democratically by winning at least 50% of the electorate. If he failed to garner 50+%, he would not only be tossed out of office, he would also be prevented from being listed as a candidate on Question 2--just as Grey Davis is now. Republicans would scream "But the new governor has not done anything yet to deserve this!" And Democrats would scream back: "Neither did Grey Davis!" Indeed, Grey Davis could be listed on Question 2 of a second recall election, and depending on how the California electorate is then divided, theoretically he could regain office with a small percentage of the votes.
2. A second recall election is probably the only political event that might push Californians to modify or nullify the state's recall law. A second recall election would cost the state another $60-70 million on top of $60-70 million the state is now spending on the first recall election. It would paralyze state government for another two months. It would clearly demonstrate to even the most ardent supporters of the recall that the same recall law can be used to reverse the results of a recall election, and the recall of a duly elected governor for anything less than crimes or moral turpitude will inevitably trigger an endless series of recall elections that threaten the foundations of democratic state government. The California recall law is fundamentally flawed and self-defeating. A second recall election would demonstrate this to the entire California electorate in no uncertain terms.
Who can organize such an effort before the October 7 election? Certainly, the Democratic Party could, but that would taint the effort with partisanship. It would also commit the Democratic Party to launch adrive for a second recall election against Bustamante in the event that Bustamante became governor with less votes than Davis received on Question 1--something the Democratic party would never do. So the answe is: only a non-partisan independent organization--representing thos Californians who think the recall is a threat to democracy--could have th credibility and the resolve to carry out this action. The fact that this organization would not be a political party backing a specific
andidate means that contributions of money would not be limited by any campaign financing law, and thus it could raise $1 million in a relatively short period of time. If it used the Internet effectively, it could
also quickly collect 1 million pledges to sign a petition for a seco nd recall election the very day that Gov.Davis is recalled and another candidate becomes governor with less votes than Davis received on Question 1.