Arnold could ‘terminate’ other candidates for governor
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It’s been weeks since Arnold Schwarzenegger announced his candidacy for governor in the upcoming California recall election. Some people still joke about the idea of “the terminator” seriously being the next governor of California. Other people point to a recent Los Angeles Times poll that shows Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante with a 13 percent lead. Still other people point to the extremely long candidate list for the election. While people in and out of California continue to express doubt about Schwarzenegger and the recall election, they are ignoring something important. Despite the jokes, various polls, and the horde of contenders, Schwarzenegger has a serious chance of winning the upcoming recall election.

Most people now consider Schwarzenegger to be a serious Republican candidate, but still joke about the possibility of him winning. While the doubters joke, they seem to have forgotten the serious actions that Schwarzenegger recently took. Along with filing the necessary paperwork, he has recruited financial mogul Warren Buffet as a financial adviser and fellow superstar, Rob Lowe, as a political liaison for the Hollywood voters.

According to a recent Associated Press story, Schwarzenegger has a larger campaign fund than either Gov. Gray Davis or Lt. Gov. Bustamante. Schwarzenegger has been vague on certain issues, but the campaign Web sites for Lt. Gov. Bustamante and candidate Arianna Huffington don’t specifically list their stances on these issues either. While it’s true that the superstar has never held public office, he has prepared himself to be a real candidate at poll time.

Some people are quick to point out election polls. A poll done by the Los Angeles Times this weekend shows Bustamante leading 35 to 22 percent over Schwarzenegger.

However, there are other factors about that poll that should be considered. The same poll shows 46 percent of likely voters saying they may change their minds before the election on October 7th. In addition, the poll was taken after Lt. Gov. Bustamante won a California Congressional delegation endorsement, and before Republican candidate Bill Simon dropped out of the race this weekend. In other words, Lt. Gov. Bustamante may be in the lead now, but things could change.

Even if the people know about Schwarzenegger’s actions and seriously understand the polls, some still point out the long candidate list. Weeks ago, one popular and hilarious news story talked about the large number of Californians filing governor candidacy paperwork. While over two hundred people initially filed candidacy paperwork in the beginning, many names were dropped because they turned their paperwork in late, their backgrounds made them ineligible and other factors. As stated earlier, high profile candidate Bill Simon voluntarily dropped out of the race. While it’s true the candidate list has over 100 names, it may not stay that way.

Admittedly, the Schwarzenegger campaign has no guarantee of victory. The recall election is still over a month away and California Gov. Davis would still need to be recalled before anyone could replace him. Along with that, Schwarzenegger has to deal with doubters, discouraging poll figures and over one hundred candidates who also want Gov. Davis’ position. Despite those obstacles, Schwarzenegger has taken serious political action, outdone the incumbents on fund raising and may face less competition at election time. He faces a tough challenge ahead, but he could “be back.”

Eugene Chu is a senior political science major from Arlington. He can be reached at (e.t.chu@tcu.edu)