Governor Gavin Newsom’s office has sent an email requesting volunteers to reach out to Democrats who have had their ballots rejected in the recent Proposition 1 vote.
Newsom’s desperate email comes as Proposition 1, a $6.4 billion initiative to provide more public housing and mental health services, currently holds a thin lead.
Residents of California cast their votes on Proposition 1 during the March 5th California Primary, and now, a week later, unofficial results show Proposition 1 has received 50.2% of the vote with half a million votes still to be counted.
The email from Newsom read, “The votes are being counted, and it is CLOSE. Like, just a couple thousand votes
close. We need help reaching out to Democrats who have had their ballots rejected for things like forgetting to include a signature and get their ballots counted.”
Newsom’s urgent email also asked volunteers to attend a Zoom training, print out two forms voters need to sign, and go out to find Democrat rejected ballots.
Newsom launches rescue mission for rejected Prop 1 ballots https://t.co/arjzPQmRyy
— POLITICO (@politico) March 15, 2024
Per Politico:
Gov. Gavin Newsom is embarking on a last-minute scramble to correct rejected ballots as his prized $6.4 billion mental health and housing bond maintains a razor-thin lead.
The governor’s federal PAC, Campaign for Democracy, sent an urgent volunteer request to supporters Thursday night, asking them to help reach out to Democrats who have had their ballots rejected — for reasons like forgetting to include a signature — in an effort to get their ballots counted.
“This ballot initiative is SO CLOSE that your commitment to volunteer could mean the difference between people getting off the streets and into the treatment they need… or not,” the governor’s email read. “Truly. It is that close.”
The most recent update showed Proposition 1 with 50.2 percent of the vote, leading by about 21,000 votes with a half-million ballots left to be counted statewide. The uncertainty is so great that Newsom on Friday postponed his annual State of the State address, originally scheduled for Monday.
Sacramento-based Democratic consultant Steven Maviglio told Politico Newsom’s decision was “highly unusual for a statewide measure.”
Californians Against Proposition 1 obtained a copy of Newsom’s email.
LOOK:
Second email (how we know that the data is coming from PDI/@Political_Data). Again, our apologies for our delay in posting these. pic.twitter.com/WCRUZnQpog
— Californians Against Proposition 1 (@prop1no) March 15, 2024
