The vote will be a Yes/No on "Do you want Davis recalled?"
If you vote "Yes", you will then be allowed to choose from a list of candidates that includes anyone with $3500 and 65 signatures. This will be a big list.
Now let's say 55% of the voting public says "Yes" (and 45% say "No"), giving a majority to the recall of Gray Davis. Then let's say this "majority" goes on to vote for who they want to replace Davis like so:
54% - Tom
27% - Dick
13% - Harry
5% - Jane
Tom wins. Even though the 45% of voters who chose "No" on the recall were prevented from choosing the new governor. This is because a "No" vote on the recall will not be the same as voting FOR Gray Davis, which is the intention of a "No" vote (Voting against recalling Gray Davis is the same as a vote of confidence in him). If a "No" vote were the same as voting for Davis, the percentages would break down like so:
45% - Gray Davis
30% - Tom
15% - Dick
7% - Harry
3% - Jane
The Republicans, after buying an October California election, have now rigged that election in court so that their Second Place candidate will win. Critics have lauded the situation in California as proof that direct Democracy doesn't work, but there is nothing Democratic about what is happening there if the vote is rigged to ignore the true majority vote.
Confused? So are a lot of the farmers' market shoppers who signed the petitions, I'll bet.
