Newsom Ballot Measure Forced to be Withdrawn

With all this talk of Joe Biden being replaced and Newsom being touted as a possible candidate, it was a bit of a surprise to see California Democrats knock him down a notch.

Newsom was hoping to put a new ballot measure up for a vote to have criminal sentences reduced for drug dealing and theft.

It would appear legislators are realizing their constituents are getting sick and tired of the soft-on-crime attitude, so the ballot measure has been defeated, forcing Newsom to withdraw it.

Sorry, Gavin

For the measure to make it to the November ballot, Newsom would have needed a majority of state legislators to back it.

Newsom had sent out a press release with his initiative, which also had the backing of Senate President pro-Tempore Mike McGuire, D-North Coast, and Speaker of the Assembly Robert Rivas, D-Hollister.

Greg Totten, CEO of the California District Attorneys Association and a spokesperson, celebrated Newsom’s measure's withdrawal.

He stated, “We are pleased the Governor and Legislature have dropped their countermeasure and welcome them to join our campaign to responsibly amend Prop 47 to deal with retail theft, the fentanyl crisis, and homelessness.”

Prop. 47 was passed about 10 years ago, which downgraded most criminal thefts to misdemeanors, so they were rarely prosecuted.

This has resulted in business and community leaders backing the Homelessness, Drug Addiction, and Theft Reduction Act.

This will create a $950 threshold for felony theft charges as well as allow for new penalties for harder drugs, varying by the level of dealers who are arrested.

This is now the second time that Newsom’s agenda on this front has been defeated by his legislature, so this is not exactly a good look for the man who is often touted as the party's future.

So, step aside, Gavin, because it appears as though Kamala Harris is taking your place, even though she is one of the least popular Democrats on the planet right now.