Doug Ose Enters Race For CA Governor As Newsom Defends His Post

CALIFORNIA — A third Republican has tossed his hat in a race to unseat Gov. Gavin Newsom. Former Republican congressman Doug Ose said Tuesday he will enter the recall election.

Ose, who served in Congress from 1999 to 2005, joins former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and businessman John Cox in the race. Cox lost voters to Newsom by huge margins in 2018.

So far, no noteworthy Democrats have entered the race.

"Californians are tired of having a governor whose operating themes are hypocrisy, self-interest, half-truths and mediocrity," Ose, 65, said on Tuesday. If elected, Ose vowed to stand behind law enforcement.

The news comes just one day after Newsom broke his silence on the effort and launched his own "Stop the Republican Recall" counter-campaign with fellow Democratic leaders. Supporters of the recall have less than 24 hours left to collect the near 1.5 million signatures needed to place Newsom on the ballot.

READ MORE: 10 Straggling California Counties Get Green Light Into Red Tier

The recall's leaders say they have garnered over 2 million signatures to land Newsom's name on the ballot in 2022, but hundreds of thousands of these signators have yet to be validated by election officials.

"I won't be distracted by this partisan, Republican recall — but I will fight it," Newsom said Monday. "There is too much at stake."

Now that coronavirus cases have plummeted from their winter height and with vaccinations on the rise, it seems the Democratic governor has pivoted to focus on an earlier than expected campaign trail. On Tuesday, Newsom acknowledged that voters will likely see his name on the 2022 ballot.

In the last 24 hours, the governor has sat down for a few nationally televised interviews to discuss the likely recall election.

"We are taking it very seriously," Newsom told CNN in a discussion about the recall.

In an interview with ABC's The View, he discussed the recall effort with co-host Whoopi Goldberg, who asked him if he is concerned.

"Of course I'm worried about it," Newsom said. "...I have to do my job every single day but I'm going to fight this thing because I'm going to fight for California and the things I hold dear."

Newsom established a political committee on Monday to begin raising money to win the potential recall election.

A swath of Democratic leaders rallied behind Newsom on Monday including Sens. Bernie Sanders, Alex Padilla and Elizabeth Warren; Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.), Rep. Cory Booker (D-New Jersey), Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams.

President Joe Biden also said he opposes the effort to recall Newsom, Jen Psaki, Biden's press secretary said in February.

A "Stop the Republican Recall" campaign went live on Monday, debuting a website that paints the recall effort as one backed by Trump supporters, QAnon supporters, anti-vaccine activists and "extremist Republicans."

READ MORE: Newsom Slams Recall, Launches Counter-Campaign

"If you look at the list of grievances from the proponents of this campaign, it goes to our values," Newsom said on ABC's The View. "It’s less about me, it’s more about California and our values — Democratic Party values."

Newsom's vow to fight back could pose a formidable threat for recall supporters. Under state rules, the California governor can raise money in unlimited amounts, while other candidates must abide by contribution limits.

The Golden State's Democratic Party swiftly donated $250,000 to the defense effort. In addition, Newsom's campaign is likely to receive a landslide of cash from allies and Democratic constituents who helped get him into office in 2018.

"[Newsom has] made tough calls that kept Californians safe and helped them recover financially," Booker said, addressing the governor's pandemic response in a statement. "Defeating this cynical, Trump-fueled recall effort will be one of the most important priorities for Democrats this year."

The recall effort sprouted last February, before the pandemic severely upended life in California, but supporters say that Newsom's response to the pandemic has been disastrous for businesses and revealed serious fissures within the state's unemployment agency after an audit revealed widespread fraud.

A poll released by Emerson College and Nexstar Media Group Inc. on Monday found that Californians were split on Newsom's pandemic response, with 45.4 percent saying they approve and 43.7 percent disapproving.

"I'm looking forward to defeating this recall, getting more shots in people's arms and getting this economy roaring again," Newsom said on CNN's The Lead with Jake Tapper.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.