Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved

A elector stands adjacent to an arrow pointing toward a ballot center, Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2021, successful Huntington Beach, Calif. With Gov. Gavin Newsom's destiny astatine stake, Californians formed the past of the ballots that volition determine whether helium continues to pb them oregon if the nation's astir populous authorities veers successful a much blimpish absorption amid choler implicit his actions during the COVID-19 pandemic. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Associated Press declared Tuesday nighttime that Gov. Gavin Newsom had survived a callback effort, with a bulk of voters choosing not to oust the Democratic politician with conscionable implicit a twelvemonth remaining successful his archetypal term.

But it did not sanction a victor for the 2nd question connected the statewide ballot: Who should regenerate Newsom if the recall were successful?

Voters could take among 46 candidates, led by a fistful of Republicans with capable resources to tally a statewide run successful California's costly media markets.

The results of that question could supply a sneak peek into the viability of respective well-known Republicans heading into adjacent year's statewide wide election. Conservative speech vigor big Larry Elder had much than 43% of the ballot successful aboriginal returns, easy outpacing the different candidates connected the ballot.

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But due to the fact that voters decided not to region Newsom from office, AP did not state a “winner” for the 2nd question due to the fact that the result of the 2nd question connected the callback ballot was made irrelevant by the result of the first.

“We can't state a winner, due to the fact that (Elder) didn't triumph anything. He's not going to beryllium governor,” said Stephen Ohlemacher, AP's Elections Decision Editor. “We ever privation to beryllium precise cautious successful what we report. And we privation to beryllium wide astir what we're doing, truthful erstwhile we state a winner, it's precise definitive.”

Newsom had urged his supporters to permission the 2nd question blank, and the votes counted truthful acold suggests they followed that advice. Of the much than 8 cardinal ballots counted arsenic of precocious Tuesday night, astir fractional didn't see a prime for who should instrumentality implicit successful the lawsuit the callback had been a success.

When AP reported the callback had failed, “no” connected the question of whether to footwear Newsom retired of bureau was up by a 2-to-1 margin. In the days ahead, arsenic votes formed astatine in-person polling places connected Tuesday are added to the total, that pb volition apt shrink, Ohlemacher said.

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But AP's investigation concluded that Newsom's pb among votes formed aboriginal and by message — which were the archetypal to beryllium counted connected Tuesday nighttime — was acold excessively large for “yes” to drawback up.

“They volition beryllium counting votes for days. That pb volition astir apt narrow. But it's conscionable truthful immense close present that there's conscionable not capable votes to beryllium counted to flooded a pb similar that,” Ohlemacher said.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.