Governor Davis Recall is Approved

But confusion reigned as Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante (D) said he will not issue a call for a two-part ballot that would ask first whether Davis should be recalled and second who should replace him if he is ousted. Instead, Bustamante said he would leave the question of how to choose a possible Davis successor to an independent commission and the California Supreme Court's interpretation of the state constitution.

The high court could rule that if Davis is ousted by voters, his successor would automatically be Bustamante. That would inevitably be challenged by GOP hopefuls who want onto the ballot. Or the state supreme court could order the fall ballot to include a list of candidates for Davis's job if he is successfully recalled. That is the ballot everyone has been expecting to see.

The latest twist comes as California Secretary of State Kevin Shelley tonight received the final signatures from the petitions gathered to put Davis to a recall vote.

A Los Angeles Times survey concluded that recall organizers had at least 1,105,802 valid signatures. It takes 897,158 to qualify the recall for the ballot. If recall proponents have gathered 110 percent of the signatures required, which appears likely, Shelley must immediately certify that the recall election proceed.

Then it is up to Bustamante to set a date for the election within 60 to 80 days, possibly as early as Sept. 23. Bustamante said he would pick the date immediately, but would leave the question of how to choose a possible Davis successor to the Commission on the Governorship.

That commission has never met, and its chairman, state Senate President Pro Tem John Burton (D), said, "Up until three days ago, I didn't know there was such a thing."

The confusion over the ballot places greater pressure on possible candidates to replace Davis. The only announced candidate is Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), but supporters of actor Arnold Schwarzenegger say the film star is mulling a run, as is former Los Angeles mayor Richard Riordan.

Democratic leaders have rallied to Davis's side and vowed that no leading Democrat would run in a recall election, but some party officials have been quietly discussing the possibility of a "caretaker" candidate to put on the ballot so that if Davis is removed, a Democrat could finish out his term.

On a morning radio interview, Davis said, "I said from the very beginning if the recall got serious, I would get serious. I've had to fight for everything in my life, and trust me, I've had more political obituaries written about me than you could possibly imagine."


© 2003 The Washington Post Company.