Thursday, May. 08, 2008

Denham recall backers give up; question will remain on the ballot

Perata calls off campaign to oust valley senator

Backers of the push to oust Republican state Sen. Jeff Denham of Atwater on Wednesday abandoned their recall campaign, although their effort still will appear on the June 3 ballot.

Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, an Alameda Democrat, announced that he would end the recall campaign to help lawmakers focus on the state's budget deficit and other pressing issues.

"This is my call -- and my best judgment about how to stop the long, slow slide into another long stalemate," Perata said in the statement, adding that his decision was not part of any agreement with state Republicans.

Kevin Spillane, a spokesman for the anti-recall campaign, said he welcomed Perata's declaration but wanted to see actions, not words.

"Just this week, they increased their media buys," Spillane said. "We want the commercials to be canceled, to see the signs come down."

Commercials for the pro-recall and anti-recall campaigns appeared on Sacramento TV on Wednesday evening.

Paul Hefner, a spokesman for the pro-recall campaign, said future commercials would be pulled and ad time canceled. All campaign activities will cease, he said.

Spillane pointed out that Denham still faces a challenge to his seat because the recall question remains on the ballot. Monterey County Supervisor Simon Salinas also is on the ballot, and will take Denham's seat if enough people vote to recall him. A simple majority is needed to unseat Denham.

"We still need to run a campaign, and we still need voters to say no," Spillane said.

Salinas did not return a call for comment. Hefner said Perata had told Salinas that the recall campaign would end.

Denham, who represents the 12th Senate District that includes a portion of Stanislaus County, is the subject of a recall vote because Perata was upset by Denham's refusal to vote for a state budget during the summer.

At the time, Denham said the proposed budget was not balanced, but Perata and other Democrats said Denham was going back on campaign promises, and began collecting signatures for a recall.

But since the recall was certified for the ballot in March, local elected officials in both parties and media outlets statewide have decried the effort.

The two-thirds issue

Critics contended that Perata, who controls a political fund that contributed money toward the recall, wanted Denham out because replacing him with a Democrat would make it easier for Perata's party to pass legislation.

Fiscal matters such as the state budget need a two-thirds vote to pass. In the state Senate, that requires at least two Republican state senators.

Last week, Perata said Denham's recall would make it easier for the state to pass a budget that included new taxes for the new fiscal year.

The state budget, which by state law is supposed to be in place by July 1, faces a deficit of $13 billion to $20 billion that lawmakers must close.

Perata's statement said the recall kept coming up when he met with Senate Minority Leader Dave Cogdill, R-Modesto, to discuss the state budget.

Cogdill said Perata was making a wise decision.

"This eliminates an unnecessary distraction in an already contentious budget year," Cogdill said in a statement. "This will allow us to focus on doing what voters expect from us: achieving a balanced, responsible budget."

Merced County District Attorney Larry Morse, a Democrat whom Perata approached about challenging Denham, said he supported the Senate leader's decision to dump the recall push for the same reasons as Cogdill.

"It did not seem to have any legs and clearly did not have support in the district, which is where these things really must originate," Morse said.