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Democrats study ways to contest recall vote The step comes after the apparent failure this week of their bid to thwart anti-Davis forces from gathering enough signatures to force an unprecedented no-confidence vote. The chances of scuttling a recall vote appear remote, but lawyers might be able to tie the process up in legal knots long enough to postpone a vote from this fall until March, when voters inclined to support Davis are expected to turn out for the Democratic presidential primary. While Davis allies declined to detail their legal options, sources close to Davis said Democrats are looking into reports that the recall campaign improperly used a stable of out-of-state signature-gatherers to collect names. ``If there was systematic fraud, it could become an issue,'' said one Democrat operative familiar with the discussions. Leaders of the recall campaign rejected that claim and expressed confidence that any court challenges would fail. ``I don't see that they can stop it now,'' said Dave Gilliard, the political consultant who oversaw the petition-gathering operation that pulled its paid teams from the streets Monday after declaring that it had more than the 897,158 valid signatures needed to force a recall election. Davis allies have expressed public skepticism of the recall's numbers, but they are privately preparing to wage an aggressive campaign to save the Democratic governor's job. The team at first tried to undermine the recall effort by hiring the leading ballot measure firms to collect names for a pro-Davis petition, a move intended to limit the number of signature-gatherers available to work for the recall forces. Davis has denounced the recall as the brainchild of disgruntled Republican extremists who are promoting their own personal agenda by promoting a special election that could cost the state $30 million at a time when it is grappling with a $38 billion budget shortfall. The governor's veteran campaign team is beginning to reassemble to gauge public support for the recall and is already expressing confidence that Davis will once again prevail at the ballot box. Law favors recall bid That has not stopped the governor's supporters from exploring whether the courts could intervene if out-of-state residents were paid to gather names. But election law appears to favor the recall. State elections officials have long held that people who challenge direct democracy face a high hurdle. The policy was laid out nearly 90 years ago by California judges who concluded that the right of voters to remove their elected leaders ``should be liberally construed and should not be interfered with by the courts except upon clear showing that the law is being violated.'' Gilliard said his team made sure every one of his paid signature-gatherers was a registered California voter as required by law, and a spokeswoman for Secretary of State Kevin Shelley noted that, even if some of the hired guns weren't California residents, they would still count the names on those petitions. ``It would not impact the signatures,'' Shelley spokeswoman Terri Carbaugh said Tuesday. But Davis supporters could still test that interpretation in court. Gilliard said one reason his team is rushing to turn in the final signatures this month is to give the recall movement time to fight potential legal challenges. If everything falls in place for the recall campaign, elections officials could notify Shelley in two weeks that enough eligible voters support the recall. If that happens, Shelley would have to quickly verify the results and alert Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante that he needs to call a recall election within 60 to 80 days.
If recall opponents challenge the
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