Gavin Newsom and Larry Elder Caught in a Tight Race in California

California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks at an event in Delano, Calif., March 31, 2021; Larry Elder at the 2016 FreedomFest in Las Vegas, Nev. (Mandel Ngan/Reuters, Gage Skidmore)

Mail-in ballots for the September 14 referendum on whether the governor should be recalled have begun to roll in.

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A
ugust has been a rough month for Democratic political royalty. Governor Andrew Cuomo, the son of the late governor Mario Cuomo, resigned in disgrace over sexual harassment and COVID scandals. Terry McAuliffe, the longtime fundraising fixer for the Clintons, is polling below 50 percent in his attempt to reclaim Virginia’s governorship.

And California’s Governor Gavin Newsom, whose family has been intertwined for generations with the families of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former governor Jerry Brown, is in grave danger of being ousted from office in a September 14 recall election.

Newsom’s plight is surprising. He was elected with 62 percent of …