2008 Woodie Awards
Schwarzenegger garners near-majority
Rong-Gong Lin, II & My-Thuan Tran--Daily Californian (U. California-Berkeley)
Issue date: 10/8/03 Section: News
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(U-WIRE) BERKELEY, Calif. - California voters, angry with the state's leadership, recalled unpopular Gov. Gray Davis Tuesday and vaulted Hollywood action hero Arnold Schwarzenegger to the governor's office with a commanding victory.
With more than 10 million energized voters flocking to the polls -- a record for a California gubernatorial election -- the state's historic recall was a clear sign of voters' rage against the lagging economy and budget crisis. Voters embraced Schwarzenegger's calls to return fiscal responsibility to Sacramento, promote a business-friendly environment, repeal the recent car tax hike, and protect public-school funding.
Fifty-four percent of voters approved the recall, and Schwarzenegger, a Republican, won the race to replace Davis, taking 48 percent of the vote, with 88 percent of the precincts reporting. Democratic Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante came in a distant second at 33 percent, and Republican state Sen. Tom McClintock at 13 percent. The majority of Alameda County voters opposed the recall and supported Bustamante.
As of press time, Schwarzenegger won more than 3 million votes -- on track to receive more votes than Davis did when he was re-elected in 2002. Recent allegations that Schwarzenegger groped more than a dozen women over several decades did not appear to substantially hurt his campaign.
Governor-elect Schwarzenegger declared victory two and a half hours after the polls closed, following concession speeches from Davis and Bustamante.
"Today California has given me the greatest gift of all. You have given me your trust by voting for me," Schwarzenegger said. "I will do everything I can to live up to the trust. I will not fail you. I will not disappoint you. I will not let you down."
The governor-elect reached out to those who did not support the recall and the heavily polarized state Legislature to work together to solve California's problems and restore public confidence in Sacramento.
With more than 10 million energized voters flocking to the polls -- a record for a California gubernatorial election -- the state's historic recall was a clear sign of voters' rage against the lagging economy and budget crisis. Voters embraced Schwarzenegger's calls to return fiscal responsibility to Sacramento, promote a business-friendly environment, repeal the recent car tax hike, and protect public-school funding.
Fifty-four percent of voters approved the recall, and Schwarzenegger, a Republican, won the race to replace Davis, taking 48 percent of the vote, with 88 percent of the precincts reporting. Democratic Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante came in a distant second at 33 percent, and Republican state Sen. Tom McClintock at 13 percent. The majority of Alameda County voters opposed the recall and supported Bustamante.
As of press time, Schwarzenegger won more than 3 million votes -- on track to receive more votes than Davis did when he was re-elected in 2002. Recent allegations that Schwarzenegger groped more than a dozen women over several decades did not appear to substantially hurt his campaign.
Governor-elect Schwarzenegger declared victory two and a half hours after the polls closed, following concession speeches from Davis and Bustamante.
"Today California has given me the greatest gift of all. You have given me your trust by voting for me," Schwarzenegger said. "I will do everything I can to live up to the trust. I will not fail you. I will not disappoint you. I will not let you down."
The governor-elect reached out to those who did not support the recall and the heavily polarized state Legislature to work together to solve California's problems and restore public confidence in Sacramento.