Gavin Newsom’s Approval Collapses in California to 46%

California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s approval rating has collapsed in the Golden State, falling from two-thirds in September to 46% now, according to a new poll reported by Politico on Tuesday.

Politico noted:

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s approval rating has plummeted as the public sours on his pandemic management, according to a new Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll that underscores the viability of a campaign to recall Newsom.

The poll found that just 46 percent of California voters approve of Newsom’s job performance — a sharp decline from the two-thirds who backed him in a September IGS poll. His declining standing tracked with growing public disaffection over Newsom’s handling of the coronavirus: the share of voters who said he is doing an excellent or good job dropped from roughly half in September to about a third, while those who faulted him for doing a poor job leaped from 28 percent to 43 percent.

Fiscally, California is in good shape, with Newsom announcing earlier this year that the state expects a $15 billion surplus.

However, he has faced several recent controversies, including his participation in a dinner at the elite French Laundry restaurant while much of the state was under coronavirus restrictions, and electricity blackouts in the midst of a heat wave.

A recall effort is currently under way, with organizers claiming to have gathered some 80% of the 1.5 million signatures necessary by March 17 to put a recall on the ballot. Both Democrats and Republicans have begun jumping into the race to replace him, with former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, a moderate Republican, formally entering the race this week.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). His newest e-book is How Not to Be a Sh!thole Country: Lessons from South Africa. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.