Netflix CEO donates $3M to Newsom to fight recall

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings donated $3 million to a fund fighting against the recall of California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D).

Hastings’s donation was made Thursday afternoon, marking one of the largest single donations to the Stop The Republican Recall fund to date, according to a contribution filing.

Stop The Republican Recall has also received donations from billionaire and philanthropist Stewart Resnick, Professional Engineers in California Government and the California Democratic Party, Deadline reported.

According to its website, the organization “stands with Gavin Newsom and is opposed to the Republican recall.”

“Instead of helping fight the pandemic, these [Republican] partisan forces are pulling a page from the Trump playbook and attacking Californians,” the site reads.

Last month, the California secretary of state’s office confirmed that more than 1.6M signatures were collected in support of the recall effort. Only 1,495,709 signatures are required.

The recall effort began over Newsom’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic. 

Former gubernatorial candidate John Cox, former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, former congressman Doug Ose and Caitlyn Jenner have all announced candidacy in the recall race, Deadline noted. 

In 2018, Hastings donated $7 million to the California Charter Schools Association’s effort to elect former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who was a gubernatorial candidate in the primary that year. However, Villaraigosa lost to Newsom and Cox.