San Diego voters were on a path to soundly reject the recall effort against Gov. Gavin Newsom in early returns Tuesday from the Registrar of Voters.
Just over 60% of voters voted no on the question of recalling the governor. Almost 40% supported Newsom’s recall.
Statewide, nearly 67% of voters rejected the recall, with nearly 46% of precincts reporting.
Early local returns include the 875,000 ballots county voters turned in leading up to Tuesday’s official Election Day.
Among the 46 candidates seeking to replace Newsom, talk show host and author Larry Elder led the field with 43% of the vote, far outpacing former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, at just short of 17%. Both are Republicans.
Another local Republican, Rancho Santa Fe businessman John Cox, received almost 4.7% of the county vote.
Kevin Paffrath, a YouTube star and one of the few Democrats who jumped into the recall race, trailed Elder and Faulconer, with 11.2%.
Elder, a late entrant to the race, offered few policy positions, but criticized teachers’ unions and what he sees as lax crime laws.
Faulconer called for changes in state income taxes, ending them for those making less than $50,000, and exempting military retirement income.
Both have voiced support for former President Donald Trump.
Cox, who Newsom beat in the 2018 election, called for a 25% tax cut and said he would end vaccine mandates.
Just 12 candidates managed to capture receive more than 1% of county votes each. Reality show star and Olympic gold medalist Caitlyn Jenner just made it among that group, with 1.21%.
Statewide candidate results mostly mirror San Diego’s, with Elder in the lead, with 44.2% of the vote. Paffrath rose to second place at 10.6%.
Faulconer has garnered just 9.3%.
Updated at 9:40 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. Sept. 14, 2021