2003 California gubernatorial recall election
The 2003 California gubernatorial recall election was a special election permitted under California state law. It resulted in voters replacing incumbent Democratic Governor Gray Davis with Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger. The recall effort spanned the latter half of 2003. Seven of the nine previous governors, including Davis, had faced unsuccessful recall attempts.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 61.20% 34.4pp | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
Vote on recall | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Shall Gray Davis be recalled (removed) from the office of Governor? | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Results | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
County results Yes: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% No: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Replacement candidates | ||||||||||||||||||||||
If Davis is recalled, who should replace him as governor? | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 61.20% | |||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
County results Schwarzenegger: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Bustamante: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Elections in California |
|---|
After several legal and procedural efforts failed to stop it, California's first-ever gubernatorial recall election was held on October 7, and the results were certified on November 14, 2003, making Davis the first governor recalled in the history of California, and just the second in U.S. history (the first was North Dakota's 1921 recall of Lynn Frazier). California is one of 19 states that allow recalls. Nearly 18 years after the 2003 election, California held a second recall election in 2021; however, that recall was unsuccessful, failing to oust Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom.