George Gascón recall, Los Angeles County, California (2021-2022)

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Los Angeles County District Attorney recall
Officeholders
George Gascón
Recall status
Did not go to a vote
Signature requirement
566,857 signatures by July 6, 2022
See also
Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2022 Recalls in California California recall laws County official recalls Recall reports

An effort to recall George Gascón from his position as the Los Angeles County District Attorney in California did not qualify for the ballot. The L.A. County Registrar's office announced on August 15 that only 520,000 signatures had been validated out of the 715,833 signatures submitted by organizers. To get the recall on the ballot, supporters had to collect 566,857 signatures by July 6, 2022.

An earlier recall attempt against Gascón also did not go to a vote in 2021. Recall supporters announced on September 16, 2021, that they had not gathered enough signatures to meet the filing deadline. To get the recall on the ballot, supporters would have had to collect 579,062 signatures from registered voters in the county by October 26, 2021.

As of December 2022, a lawsuit filed by recall supporters against Los Angeles County is underway. Recall supporters allege that the county improperly invalidated at least 39% of the 195,783 rejected signatures, thereby preventing the recall from appearing on the ballot. Los Angeles County filed papers with the court disputing these allegations.

Gascón was elected to a four-year term in the nonpartisan general election on November 3, 2020, defeating incumbent Jackie Lacey with 53.5% of the vote.

Recall supporters

Recall supporters said that crime had risen in the county since Gascón had taken office. They published the following statement on their website about why they were pursuing a recall:

“

As soon as he was sworn into office, District Attorney George Gascón began issuing directives to his prosecutors, instructing them to go soft on crime, coddle criminals, and trample upon the dignity and rights of crime victims. To keep our communities safe, to mete out just punishment to those who break our laws, and to provide justice to crime victims throughout Los Angles County, we must recall District Attorney George Gascón.

”

The first notice of intent to recall stated the following reasons for recall:

“

Since being elected, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon has abandoned crime victims and their families. Gascon has disregarded the rule of law and weakened lawful sentencing requirements for the most violent criminals, including murderers, armed robbers, and rapists. George Gascon’s new policies treat career and repeat violent offenders as if they had never committed a crime, ignoring public safety laws approved by the people. Gascon has even reduced sentences on hate crimes, gun crimes, and gang crimes. On behalf of crime victims and their families and in the interest of public safety, this notice of intention to recall George Gascon as Los Angeles District Attorney is submitted.

”

On February 22, 2022, the Los Angeles Association of Deputy District Attorneys (LAADDA) took a vote on whether to support the recall. A total of 83.3% of the prosecutors voted, and 97.9% of them supported the recall.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva, former Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley, former Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich, and former Los Angeles City Councilman Dennis Zine announced their support of the recall.

Before the first recall effort ended, 30 of the 88 cities in Los Angeles County passed votes of no confidence in Gascón.

Recall opponents

In 2020, Gascón campaigned on policies of "not seeking the death penalty; not prosecuting juveniles as adults; ending cash bail for misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies; and no longer filing enhancements that trigger stiffer sentences for certain elements of crimes, repeat offenses or being a gang member," according to KTLA 5. When he took office, he sent a memo to prosecutors directing them to follow those new policies. Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore spoke in support of Gascón's new policies at a joint press conference with Gascón on June 30, 2021.

At a press conference in December 2021, Gascón defended his policies and said he was not responsible for the rise in homicides and robberies in the county. "We are trying to dramatically change a system that has served no one, not the victims of crime, not those who are accused and not the public," Gascón said.

Gascón said he was trying to make the criminal justice system more efficient and more equitable. "We're trying really hard to use the science that is currently available, the data that is currently available, to do our work," Gascón said. "And I'm not going to be intimidated by political rhetoric."

Gascón told KTLA 5 in June 2021, "The reality is crime has been going up, in fact, in L.A. County we had a 25% increase in violent crime over the last seven years because we continue to do the same things over and over again, expecting different results [...] What I am doing is, I am revamping the way that we address violence by using science, using data, taking a public health lens approach with the way that we deal with crime."

At a public rally on June 18, 2021, Gascón said his policies were aimed at correcting a racist system. “Our criminal legal system is deeply embedded in the institution of slavery,” Gascón said. “We cannot walk away from that.”

Path to the ballot

See also: Laws governing recall in California

The L.A. County Registrar's office announced on August 15, 2022, that the recall did not qualify for the ballot, after only 520,000 signatures were validated out of the 715,833 signatures submitted by organizers. To get the recall on the ballot, supporters had to collect 566,857 signatures by July 6, 2022. The number of signatures was equal to 10% of registered voters in the county.

Recall supporters served Gascón with a notice of intent to recall on December 7, 2021. The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk approved the recall petition for circulation on January 27, 2022.

Recall organizers also unsuccessfully tried to recall Gascón earlier in 2021, serving him with a prior notice of intent to recall in March. To get this recall on the ballot, supporters would have had to collect 579,062 signatures by October 26, 2021.

The first recall effort could not start until Gascón had been in office for 90 days. He took office on December 7, 2020.

See also

• Government of Los Angeles County, California
• Recall campaigns in California
• Political recall efforts, 2021
• Political recall efforts, 2022
• County official recalls

External links

• Search Google News for this topic
• Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office
• Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk
• Recall District Attorney George Gascon website