Signing the Petition:


Q. There are two addresses listed for returning petitions. Are they both valid? Which one do I send my petitions to?

A. There is only ONE recall petition, but there are many organizations collecting signatures for the recall effort.

However, only the Recall Gray Davis Committee (the committee chaired by The Honorable Howard Kaloogian) has set up a petition processing operation to make sure petitions are valid.

We are reviewing each and every petition received to make sure that they have been filled in exactly as prescribed by law. As we all saw from the repeated blockings of the petition by Secretary of State Kevin Shelley, it is paramount that we dot every "i" and cross every "t". We have assembled an expert staff to review, evaluate and process all of the petitions that are streaming into our offices.

We are now returning the petitions that have errors to the individuals who sent them in to us, along with a form indicating what needs to be corrected before the petition can be sent back to us.

We are the only organization engaging in this kind of thorough review and processing. This is why it is vital for the success of the recall effort that all petitions are sent back to:

Recall Gray Davis Committee
P.O. Box 1445
Sacramento, CA 95812

Q. I am having trouble downloading the petition. What should I do?

A. First – make sure you have a copy of Adobe Acrobat’s Reader software downloaded.

If you do not have a copy downloaded, you can find a link to download it from our website:

http://www.RecallGrayDavis.com

You might also be having a problem because your Adobe Acrobat Reader is too old of a version – in which case you need to download the new/current version. It is very easy to do. It is also FREE!

Second – Check to make sure that your problem is not a connection problem between your computer and printer or that you are not experiencing technical problems with your printer. Make sure something else prints out ok.

If after taking these steps you still cannot download the petition, please email us at: help@RecallGrayDavis.com and we will email you a copy of the petition. If you prefer, we can mail you one or more copies.

Q. What is the deadline for petitions? How long do we have to collect and submit signatures?

A. It is so important for you to send your completed petitions in as soon as possible. That gives us time to check them for accuracy and gives you time to correct any mistakes if necessary.

Unlike initiative petitions, recall petitions are officially turned in on a regular basis. We need to show the politicians in Sacramento how serious we are about bringing about responsible change. We need to maintain a steady stream of petitions, and we would appreciate your sending whatever you have collected on a weekly basis.

The final day for us to collect and submit signatures to qualify the recall effort is September 2nd, which means we have approximately 150 days to gather 897,158. Our goal is to try and collect the 897,158 signatures well before the deadline!

Q. I have many people who want to sign the petition, but they live in different counties. Do I need a separate petition for people who live in different counties?

A. YES! Each petition printed can only contain signatures for people living in the ONE county identified in the section designated on the petition. If you look at the middle of the petition page, just above the signature box, you will see a place to enter the county of the signatures gathered. It is important to fill this in (many people overlook this section) and make sure the signatures on that page come ONLY from registered voters residing within that county.

If you have someone from another county, just print out another petition form and have them sign it with the name of their county designated on the form. Either you or that person can then fill out and bottom and sign as the circulator. You can be the circulator no matter where you are a registered voter in California; you don’t have to be in the same county as the signers of the petition.

Q. Can I make photocopies of the petition form?

A. Absolutely! Just be sure the copy is totally clean and neat and is made from an original (printed) petition. Remember: ONLY PHOTOCOPY COMPLETELY BLANK PETITIONS. Do not photocopy a petition that has ANY writing on it – even if it is just the county section. The photocopy must be made from a perfectly blank petition. Also, do not write or print anything on the back of the petition.

Q: I would like to wear one of the Recall Gray Davis t-shirts while I collect signatures. This is especially important for me when I stand in front of grocery stores, work through movie lines, etc… How do I order one of these Recall t-shirts?

A: You can click here to order Recall Gray Davis t-shirts and bumper stickers. Suggested contribution amounts and other order information are provided on that page of our website.

Q: Can petitions be on any size of paper, both regular or the longer legal size paper?

A: NO! Petitions must comply with the dimensions approved by the California Secretary of State, Kevin Shelley. It was submitted as an 8.5” x 11” document, and therefore all copies printed or photocopied must also be 8.5” x 11” or else they may be deemed invalid.

Q: The instructions say not to alter the size of the petition. If I print the Adobe Acrobat format of the petition from your website, how do I know if it is the legal size? Will the Secretary of State just dump the ones printed off your web site for being the wrong size?

A: There is no need to worry. The petitions you print will comply with the law so long as they meet the following criteria: They must be 8.5” x 11” in size. The law mandates there must be a 1” margin at the top and a .5” margin at the bottom of the petition. We have already allowed for ample margins in these areas so that any minor offset by your printer should still allow for the necessary margins required by law.

Q: I wanted to know if there was a way my family could sign this petition online?

A: NO! While you may download and print a petition from the Internet, you must sign the actual paper petition. You cannot place an “electronic signature” on a petition as the Secretary of State has indicated these signatures will be deemed invalid.

Q: I read that you need millions of dollars to qualify this recall. Have you raised that much money? If you don’t, will the effort fail?

A: Numerous press accounts have indeed said that millions of dollars must be raised for this effort to be successful. However, what they don’t take into account is that hundreds of thousands of signatures will be gathered from petitions distributed online. This provides a substantial reduction in the costs to the Recall Gray Davis Committee. There is no cost to us when someone obtains signatures from petitions downloaded from our website:

http://www.RecallGrayDavis.com.

We still will need to collect hundreds of thousands of signatures through the mail and probably through paid signature gatherers as well. And, we will have to maintain an advertising presence to defend the recall efforts from attacks by Gray Davis and his cronies, who are already employing dirty tricks to block our efforts.

For this reason we continue to plead with our supporters to make a contribution – even if you have made one before. We are surviving off of small donor contributions of $35, $50, $100, etc… Obviously, we are NOT in bed with the giant special interests that fund Gray Davis’ efforts. That means we must collect thousands of contributions from small donors in order to raise the funds it will take to keep this recall effort alive and successful.

Please help us! We really need as many of you to make a contribution to the link below as possible:

http://www.recallgraydavis.com/Contribute.htm

If you prefer to mail in a check or money order you may do so to the address below:

Recall Gray Davis Committee
P.O. Box 1445
Sacramento, CA 95812

Q: How can I help you obtain even more signatures than those I am collecting on my recall petitions?

A: There are three ways you can help:

1) Utilize our handy ‘Tell A Friend’ feature which allows you to send an email notice to someone urging him or her to join the Recall Gray Davis effort. Click here for more info:

http://lists.recallgraydavis.com/Tell-A-Friend.asp

2) Take petitions wherever you go. People at stores and shops you frequent are as eager as you are to sign the petition. Take petitions to clubs and organization meetings you attend. If you have some time to set up a card table at your local grocery store, that is another excellent way to get hundreds of signatures.

3) You can email our campaign coordinator if you would like to help out in your area or help out in our Sacramento headquarters. Email David Pegos at:

David@RecallGrayDavis.com

Q. Who can sign the petition?

A. Any individual who is legally registered to vote in California may sign the petition to Recall Gray Davis. You must only sign the body of the petition once. If you sign multiple petitions, you may invalidate them all. Remember, however, that signing up online at any of the Recall Gray Davis campaign websites does not constitute signing the petition, and you will still want to sign the paper petition when it becomes available.

Q. If I didn’t vote last November, can I still sign the petition?

A. Yes! It doesn’t matter whether you voted in the last election or not. As long as you are a legally registered voter in California, you are eligible to sign the petition. There is a link on our website – www.RecallGrayDavis.com - where you can register to vote.

Q. Do I need to be registered to vote to sign the petition? How do I register?

A. Yes, but you can register on the spot if you are not already registered. You must be legally registered to vote in California to sign the petition. Once you register to vote, then you can sign – even if the county clerk has not officially received your new voter registration card. If you fill out a voter registration card (available at post offices and DMV offices), then you can sign the petition as long as you mail the registration card at the same time.

You also can register to vote easily on the Secretary of State’s website. We have posted a link to their website at www.RecallGrayDavis.com. You can also request more information by calling the Secretary of State’s voter information office at:

1-800-345-VOTE (8683)

The Recall Campaign:

Q. Who is behind the recall campaign? Are there two different recall campaigns?

A. There is only one campaign to recall Gov. Gray Davis, but there are multiple organizations working to make this effort successful. Our official name as filed with the California Secretary of State is The Recall Gray Davis Committee, I.D. #1253179.

Our Chairman is The Honorable Howard Kaloogian – California State Assemblyman from 1994-2000. Our Treasurer is Teri Smith O’Rourke, who has worked on numerous campaigns and was a member of Governor George Deukmejian’s office staff. Douglas Lorenz, Chairman of the National Republican Liberty Caucus, heads our Advisory Board.

Q. How will the money be spent on the recall campaign?

A. There are two principal costs involved in this recall effort: organizing the tens of thousands of Californians who will be volunteer petition circulators and advertising our efforts. We know that Governor Gray Davis will be spending tens of millions of dollars to smear the recall effort and anyone who supports it. It will be vitally important for us to be able to raise the funds necessary to respond to his attacks and to continuously remind voters of the lies and deception Davis has used to hide the massive state budget crisis in order to win re-election.

If you are able to make a financial contribution we hope you will take this opportunity right now to visit our secure online contribution site:

http://www.recallgraydavis.com/Contribute.htm

Q. Gray Davis said that this recall would cost $25-40 million. Is that true?

A. There will indeed be a small cost to conducting an election should the recall effort qualify for the ballot. But this cost will be a minute fraction of the amount Gray Davis has cost Californians. The state’s budget deficit grows by more than that EVERY single day, while the Governor and Legislature do little to solve the state’s financial problem.

• It is 1/4th of the amount he cost Californians in the Oracle software scandal.

• It is less than 1% of the cost to Californians from Gray Davis’ mishandling of the Energy Crisis.

• It is less than 1% of the cost to Californians from Gray Davis’ mishandling of the Budget Crisis.

Ask yourselves if you think it will be cheaper to spend $25 million to Recall Gray Davis now, or allow him to cost the state billions and billions of dollars more from his continued failed leadership and corruption.

How the Recall Works:

Q. What is the timeline for the signature gathering process and how many signatures are needed?

A. If the recall qualifies by obtaining sufficient signatures, the actual election would likely take place in the fall of 2003. It most likely would be in September or October, but could possibly be consolidated with the March 2004 election. The precise timing of the election depends on a variety of factors, including when the recall proceedings against Governor Davis officially begin – in other words, when the notice of intent to recall was served on Governor Gray Davis and filed with the Secretary of State.

Now that the petition has been approved the proponents of the recall have 160 days to collect the requisite number of valid signatures (897,156 valid signatures, which represents 12% of the number of voters who turned out to vote for governor during the last gubernatorial election).

Q. If Davis were recalled, would the Lieutenant Governor, Cruz Bustamante, then be Governor?

A. No! When Davis is recalled with sufficient valid signatures, we will have an election with two questions on the ballot. The first question will be whether or not you want to remove Gray Davis as Governor, and the second question will be who you want to replace Gray Davis as Governor. Lt. Gov. Bustamante would be eligible to run in the election to replace Davis, but so would anyone else. The candidate who receives the most votes on the second question would then become the new Governor

Q. Who are you supporting to replace Gray Davis as Governor? Is this recall effort affiliated with any candidate?

A. The goal of the Recall Gray Davis Committee is to recall Governor Davis and remove him from office. Because this is a broad-based coalition encompassing many political parties and ideologies, we are not advocating any individual candidate to replace Gray Davis. Any of the prospective candidates would do a better job as Governor than Gray Davis has demonstrated.

Contributing to the Recall:

Q. I don’t like to contribute online. Where may I mail a contribution?

A. Checks and money orders can be made out to “Recall Gray Davis Committee” and sent to:

Recall Gray Davis
P.O. Box 1445
Sacramento, CA 95812

Q. Are donations to the Recall Gray Davis campaign tax deductible?

A. No. Political donations are never legally tax deductible, and any organization claiming that donations to their campaign effort are deductible should be considered highly suspect. It is likely that such donations would be used for efforts that are not related in any way to the effort to Recall Gray Davis. All donations made to the Recall Gray Davis Committee are governed by California elections law, and will be used solely for the purpose of recalling Gray Davis from office.

Q. Why do you need to know where I work?

A. California elections law requires contributors to indicate their occupation and employer. It is required for campaign contributions to both state and federal offices.

Website and Email Questions:

Q. I sent you an e-mail and/or signed up on the website, why haven’t I received a response yet?

A. The good news is that we have received an unbelievable response since we started the recall effort. We have received over 6,000,000 hits to our website and have received tens of thousands of e-mails. We have been so flooded with support that we have not been able to respond to everyone as of yet. We are doing our best to make contact with everyone.

Q. I can’t read your emails! I keep getting computer code garbage!

A. We have had a problem with our HTML formatted emails being unreadable on some email systems. We are currently working to address this problem and will be sure to send out regular text-based email updates so that you can know about the great progress the Recall Gray Davis Committee has been making.

Q. I’m not getting emails from the campaign, but I signed up at the website.

A. It is possible that your subscription to the campaign emails was not processed correctly. If you feel that you are not getting campaign emails, send an email to Info@RecallGrayDavis.Com, stating the problem and the email address you would like to receive campaign emails at. You will then be subscribed as soon as possible.

Another possibility is that many Internet Service Providers use "Spam Blocker" software that is a little too aggressive, and can often block out legitimate email. In those cases, it may not be possible for you to receive emails from the recall campaign. If this is the case, then you will want to regularly check the website for updates.

Q. I just received an email saying that I wanted to be removed from the email list. I don't want to be removed. How did this happen?

A. Our email system uses a “Double-Opt-Out” method of removals so that an individual cannot be removed without their consent. This requires that if someone asks to be removed, our system will send him or her an email to verify this before the person is actually removed from the database. If you do not use the link on the removal request email, then you will not be automatically removed from our database.

It is expected that there will be some dirty tricks by the other side on this campaign, so we need to make sure that our database is as secure as possible from abuse. This method, while being a bit cumbersome at times, does tend to work well. Sometimes, however, you will get the removal request email if you or someone you forwarded the email to accidentally clicked on the removal link at the bottom of our mailings. In those cases as well, if you simply ignore and delete the email that asks if you want to be deleted, then you will not be removed from the database.

Q. What is that "Secure PinCode" that your email system sends out?

A. This is a part of the current software that we use, but is not needed for anything other than an initial sign up. You can delete the secure pincode after you are done signing up. If you later request to be added or removed from the list, you will be assigned a new pincode, which will be valid for a few days.

Q. I would like to link to your site from my website. Do you have any link graphics I can use?

A. We are working on link banners and a “Tell a Friend” feature at this time, and these will be available on the website shortly.

Miscellaneous:

Q. How can I get a Recall Gray Davis bumper sticker or T-Shirt?

A. They are now available through the website. For more information, go to:

http://www.recallgraydavis.com/BumperStickers.asp

Q. Do you have lawn signs?

A. Not yet, but lawn signs and other campaign items will be available eventually. Keep watching our website, www.RecallGrayDavis.com, for more information.