Editing Governor of California (section)

== Gubernatorial elections, oath, and term of office ==
===Qualifications===
A candidate for governor must be a [[Americans|U.S. citizen]] and a registered voter within the state, must not have been convicted of a felony involving bribery, embezzlement, or extortion, and must not have served two terms since November 6, 1990.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/prior-elections/statewide-election-results/statewide-direct-primary-election-june-3-2014/qualifications-running-office/summary-qualifications-and-requirements-offices-governor-and-lieutenant-governor/|title=Summary of Qualifications and Requirements for the Offices of Governor and Lieutenant Governor &#124; California Secretary of State|website=www.sos.ca.gov}}</ref>

===Election and oath of office===
Governors are elected by [[direct election|popular]] [[ballot]] and serve terms of four years, with a limit of two terms, if served after November 6, 1990.<ref name="Sec'y">{{cite web|author=Shelley, Kevin |title=Summary of Qualifications and Requirements for the Office of Governor |publisher=California Secretary of State Department |date=October 2003 |url=http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/gov-qual.pdf |access-date=February 23, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081128084851/http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/gov-qual.pdf |archive-date=November 28, 2008 }}</ref> Governors take the following oath:

<blockquote>I (Governor) do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the [[Constitution of the United States]] and the Constitution of the State of California against all enemies foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California, that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties upon which I am about to enter.</blockquote>Governors take office on the first Monday after January 1 after their election.

=== Gubernatorial removal ===
[[File:Governor's Mansion State Historic Park - exterior 1 (cropped).JPG|thumb|left|The [[California Governor's Mansion]], official residence of the governor.]]
Two methods exist to remove a governor.

====Impeachment and removal by the legislature====
The governor [[Impeachment in California|can be impeached]] for "misconduct in office" by the [[California State Assembly|State Assembly]] and removed by a two-thirds vote of the [[California State Senate|State Senate]].

====Recall by the voters====
Petitions signed by California state voters equal to 12% of the last vote for the office of governor (with signatures from each of five counties equal to 1% of the last vote for governor in the county) can launch a gubernatorial [[recall election]]. The voters can then vote on whether or not to recall the incumbent governor, and on the same ballot can vote for a potential replacement. If a majority of the voters in the election vote to recall the governor, then the person who gains a plurality of the votes in the replacement race will become governor.

Only two governor recall attempts have ever gained enough signatures to make the ballot in California. The [[2003 California gubernatorial recall election|2003 recall election]] began with a petition drive that forced Democratic governor [[Gray Davis]] into a recall election, which he lost. He was replaced by Republican [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]]. It was the first time that a California governor was voted out of office by Recall.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Recall History in California (1913 to June 30, 2022) |url=https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/recalls/recall-history-california-1913-present |access-date=2022-11-16 |website=California Secretary of State}}</ref>

In addition to the successful 2003 recall, current governor [[Gavin Newsom]] faced a [[2021 California gubernatorial recall election|recall election in 2021]], which he defeated.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-09-14|title=California Gov. Gavin Newsom stays in power as recall fails|url=https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-donald-trump-california-climate-elections-a590782877be099d44f1766b2d138394|access-date=2021-09-15|website=AP NEWS|language=en}}</ref>