Gubernatorial Recalls Remain Rare

More than 60 percent of Californians voted to keep governor Gavin Newsom in office. The recall effort backed by the Republican Party came with a price tag of 300 million U.S. dollars and is one of only four cases of recall elections in the history of the United States, as our chart shows.

The first governor to be recalled in the U.S. was Lynn Frazier who server as the governor of North Dakota from 1917 to 1921 and easily won his initial race for governor with 79 percent. In contrast to later officials facing recall races, Frazier didn't belong to the Democrats or Republicans but rather the freshly established, left-leaning Nonpartisan League, an offshoot of the Socialist Party of America. The party advocated control of farm-related industries by the state and and was based on the principles of agrarianism, among others. Next in line to be recalled was California governor Gray Davis in 2003, who 55 percent of voters thought should be recalled due to his decisions on stricter gun laws and his handling of the state's electricity crisis.

The two recall elections taking part over the last ten years both had favorable outcomes for the incumbents. Next to Newsom, Republican governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin was able to stay in office by a margin of only three percent. One of the main arguments for the special election was Walker's decision to limit collective bargaining rights for state employees.