• Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Mail
CalBike
  • About Us
  • Get Involved
    • Support the Bicycle Safety Stop
    • Legalize Safe Street Crossings
    • Plan for the Future Campaign
    • Pass the OmniBike Bill
    • Volunteer
    • Join/Renew
  • What We Do
    • $2 Billion for Bikes
    • Be the first to Know: E-Bike Purchase Incentives
    • $10M E-Bike Affordability Program
    • Bike the Vote 2022 Endorsements
    • 2022 Legislative Watch
    • California Bicycle Summit
    • More…
  • Resources
    • Free Quick-Build Bikeway Design Guide
    • Learn to Bike at Any Age
    • Map & Routes
    • Crash Help
    • Register Your Bike
    • California Bicycle Laws
    • All Our E-Bike Work
  • News
    • Blog
    • CalBike In the News
    • Press Releases
    • CalBike Insider
  • Shop
  • Donate
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
  • About Us
  • Get Involved
  • What We Do
  • Summit
  • Resources
  • News
  • Shop
  • Donate

Tag Archive for: recall 2021

Posts

Let’s Not Replace Newsom with Gruesome

August 27, 2021/in The Latest /by Dave Snyder

Polls of likely voters show that the election to recall the Governor is dangerously close. If the recall succeeds, the new governor will be the replacement candidate with the most votes. Currently, that is talk show host Larry Elder, whose level of support is 21%. 

So the chief executive of the world’s fifth-largest economy could be a talk show host supported by fewer than 1 in 4 voters. This is a failure of democracy and a disaster for sustainable transportation. And, yes, it’s a threat to our goals for more equitable, healthier, and joyful communities through bicycling. 

How did we get here? 

Newsom, who enjoyed a strong lead in polling earlier in the year, is in trouble now for two reasons. First, many voters are likely to forget to vote. This election is not getting the attention of a regular presidential election. 

The second is that many voters are disgusted with the “system” and see a chance to “throw the bums out”—an attitude that the recall proponents are exploiting. 

How do we respond to this threat?

  1. Don’t forget to vote. Fortunately, every voter in California, by now, has received a ballot in the mail. Send in your ballot NOW.
  1. Work with us to fix the system. Yes, our “democratic system” is not very good at reflecting the will of the people. We know that a substantial majority of people want livable communities where biking and walking are great choices to get around. Still, powerful forces defending the auto-dependent status quo make it hard for our elected representatives to make those changes. We can fix that with reforms to get oil money out of politics. CalBike has worked to change how our officials are selected, to be more small-d democratic. We will do more. 

Recalling the governor through this election does not fix the system. It breaks it further.  

If you’re frustrated because you keep getting flat tires, the answer is not to take a sledgehammer to your wheel in frustration. The answer is to get a new tire, install a flat prevention strip inside your wheel, or buy flat-free tires like the ones on bike-share bikes. 

A low-turnout, off-cycle election where the candidate with a small minority of votes (but still a plurality) gets to wield executive power in California is a worse failure of democracy than what we’re living with now.

The recall is a sledgehammer. Whoever replaces Newsom will have won with a tiny minority of voter support. That person will stymie CalBike’s efforts to implement a more equitable transportation system where people have a reasonably safe and convenient choice to use a bicycle for their trips. 

Don’t let a small elite manipulate California’s recall process. That will empower the oil and car lobbies to increase our dependence on automobiles, limit our choices for transportation, and continue to poison our air and water for their short-term profits.

Don’t sit this one out. Vote NO on the recall—return your ballot by 9/14.

https://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/i-voted-sticker-lot-1550340-scaled-e1583538108252.jpg 608 1996 Dave Snyder https://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/calbike-logo.png Dave Snyder2021-08-27 20:24:222021-08-31 18:10:36Let’s Not Replace Newsom with Gruesome

California Cyclists: Vote NO in the Recall Election

August 16, 2021/in The Latest /by Dave Snyder

While CalBike doesn’t agree with Governor Newsom on every issue, his budgets have funded programs that make California’s streets safer for everyone who rides, skates, scoots, or walks.

Governor Newsom is also committed to addressing the Climate Emergency, and bikes are clearly part of the solution.


CalBike recommends you vote NO on the recall.
Please mail in your ballot ASAP. 



Considering that even the California Republican Party chose to not endorse any of the challengers, we recommend leaving the second vote blank. None of these candidates would further our agenda of making California’s communities more prosperous, equitable, healthy, and joyful through bicycling.  

Removing Newsom and replacing him with an untested and unprepared alternative who wouldn’t represent the values of most Californians would be a disaster. It would doom the state to months of political and bureaucratic dysfunction and economic uncertainty. And for what purpose?
– Los Angeles Times 8/13/21

“With the IPCC report on global climate recently confirming the global community is nowhere close to doing enough to mitigate the climate crisis, we cannot risk having a climate denier in the California Governor’s office at this crucial time…. A pro-polluter governor at the helm in California— the world’s fifth-largest economy— will wreak havoc on our environmental future.”
– California League of Conservation Voters 8/15/21

https://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/800px-Gavin_Newsom_at_Netroots_Nation_2008_2728800028.jpg 533 800 Dave Snyder https://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/calbike-logo.png Dave Snyder2021-08-16 18:49:282021-08-18 15:08:38California Cyclists: Vote NO in the Recall Election

Latest News

  • poppies and bikesCalBike Senior Policy Advocate Reflects on Big Picture AgendaJune 30, 2022 - 6:47 pm
  • save bike shareVoices of the Coalition Opposed to Kill Bike-Share BillJune 27, 2022 - 3:43 pm
  • bike the voteElection Recap: June 2022 PrimaryJune 21, 2022 - 11:36 am

Join the movement for better biking in California

Be the first to hear about the latest news and actions you can take to help create bike-friendly communities.

DONATE

JOIN/RENEW

CONTACT US

ABOUT US

  • About Us
  • Financials & Governance
  • Staff
  • Board of Directors
  • Local Partners
  • State and National Allies
  • Careers
  • Volunteer
  • Contact Us

WHAT WE DO

  • Current Projects and Campaigns
  • Past Campaigns and Projects
  • California Bicycle Summit
  • Sign-On Letters
  • 2022 Legislative Watch

RESOURCES

  • Fact Sheets and FAQs
  • Design Best Practices
  • COVID-19 and Bicycling
  • Tips and Tricks for Happy Biking
  • Crash Help
  • Our Video Channel

EVENTS

  • California Bicycle Summit: April 2022
  • California Dream Ride
CalBike Logo

California Bicycle Coalition | 1017 L Street, #288, Sacramento, CA 95814 | 916-258-5189

Made by Zac Maybury

California Bicycle Coalition
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Mail
Scroll to top