The campaign to recall Governor Gray Davis has been gathering momentum in some quarters, causing consternation among civil rights groups. Ostensibly based on the unfortunate state of the California economy and the energy deregulation fiasco, the recall has taken a decidedly ideological turn — notable in recent calls to “recall Gay Davis.”

On Wednesday, July 2, four leading GLBT advocacy organizations hosted a conference call to present their positions on the proposed recall and to facilitate a discussion of why a recall would be detrimental to the GLBT community.

“When you look at the groups who have endorsed this recall and are promoting this recall and include the recall in their materials and websites, it includes virtually every extreme political group in the state — specifically those who are most notoriously anti-gay,” said Eric Bauman of Taxpayers Against the Governor’s Recall. Bauman is the director of Gov. Gray Davis’ Los Angeles office, and a liaison to the GLBT community for the governor. He is on a temporary leave of absence from his duties with the governor’s office.

“The Campaign for California Families, who brought us the Knight Initiative (Prop. 22) leads the way,” added Bauman. “In fact, they’ve been campaigning up and down the state the last two weeks in opposition to AB 205, the domestic partners bill, and in every speech they say, “If Gov. Davis doesn’t veto this bill we’ll recall him.”

Among the other major supporters of the recall effort are: Blessed Cause, a right wing religious group; California Pro-Life Council; Citizens for Justice, an anti-immigration group and other extremely conservative causes. In contrast, according to an LA Times exit poll, the GLBT community was the second largest group of voters for Gov. Davis in the last election.

Bauman drew the conclusion that the recall effort is an indirect attempt to reverse recent civil rights victories, particularly gains for the GLBT community.

“This governor has signed more pro-gay legislation than any other governor in America,” he pointed out. “This recall is being led by people [for whom] much of their agenda is in opposition to equal rights in California.”

Geoffrey Kors, executive director of Equality California (formerly CAPE), said his organization was against the recall because, “with the election of Davis in 1997, California moved from 16 years of divisive gubernatorial politics to a politics of inclusion — including the GLBT community. Under Davis’ leadership, the number of GLBT individuals in high level government positions has increased dramatically.”

Kors noted that over the last four years Davis has appointed seven openly gay judges, signed laws banning discrimination based on sexual orientation in the workplace, in housing and in schools, created the first statewide domestic partnership registry and signed bills adding significant rights and benefits for domestic partners.

“This year the Assembly has already passed key civil rights legislation that is presently in the Senate, and it is essential for the LGBT community that when those bills pass the Senate and reach the governor’s desk, that the governor’s desk is occupied by someone who will sign those bills and has been an advocate for our community.”

The generally acknowledged leader of the recall effort, Congressmember Darrell Issa is a right wing Republican who won his primary in 2000 by campaigning in favor of Proposition 22 (the Knight Initiative), which limited the definition of marriage in California to being between a man and a woman only. He has invested $1.5 million in the recall campaign, and has announced that he plans to run for governor if the recall goes to ballot. In connection with Issa’s recall effort, the conservative’s youthful brushes with the law, which include car theft, have been brought into the spotlight.

“He’s against gun control, he won’t support a moratorium on offshore drilling and he’s not for a woman’s right to choose,” commented Gov. Davis in a CNN interview. “He is a right-winger.”

Concern over the recall campaign has grown nationwide, in response to fears that a successful recall could severely damage civil rights gains, as well as shifting the political balance to the right.

“We just released a report detailing all of the legislation that affects the GLBT community that is being considered by state legislatures around the country, and, far and away, California has the most ambitious agenda this year to advance GLBT equality,” said Seth Kilbourn, national field director of the Human Rights Campaign. “It’s very clear to us that California continues to lead the way in terms of equality for the GLBT community.”

“We are very concerned about the illegitimate stealing of the democratic process by a handful of outside and very well paid, well-funded right wing extremists,” added Jeff LeTourneau, political director for the Elections Committee of the County of Orange (ECCO). “It would have a chilling effect on every other political official if the word goes out that if you violate the marching orders of the right wing they have the money and the apparatus to simply eliminate your legitimately held political position.

“If that word goes out from California, it’s going to go from one coast to the other and will set the GLBT community back years,” LeTourneau concluded.