Stewart and Linda Resnick have come forward in a big way to support California Gov. Gavin Newsom in his effort to fight the recall campaign that has been mounted against him.
The couple, billionaire owners of The Wonderful Company, donated $250,000 to the newly-formed Democratic fundraising committee dubbed “Stop the Republican Recall of Governor Newsom”
The Wonderful Company grows pistachios on over 100,000 acres in the Central Valley, and the Resnicks previously donated $10 million to Fresno State for the new student union, which will bear their name.
Stop the Republican Recall will be able to raise and spend an unlimited amount of money to defend Newsom, which places it as the Governor’s top tool to fight off the attempt to oust him from office.
National Democrats including Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker and Stacey Abrams have endorsed the organization, which has taken the mantle of painting recall backers as a GOP-led coalition out-of-touch with California.
The attempted branding has drawn some backlash from Democrats and Independents who signed the recall petition over Newsom’s hap-hazard handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
On the other side, the Republican Governors Association created the Recall Newsom! RGA Action committee, which – just like Stop the Republican Recall – will be able to raise and spend as much cash as it would like.
Recall organizers say that they have submitted over 2.1 million signatures, well above the 1.5 million requirement. The signatures will be verified by April 29, which will signal if Newsom will face a recall or not.
