Arnold Schwarzenegger Takes Office as California Governor

In Brief

Arnold Schwarzenegger was inaugurated as governor of California on November 17, 2003. He took office after a special recall election removed Governor Gray Davis. The election combined a vote on recalling the incumbent with a separate choice of replacement candidates. That unusual mechanism distinguished it from an ordinary gubernatorial election. The November inauguration followed the October vote.

An Oath After a Recall Election

Arnold Schwarzenegger took office on November 17, 2003, after California voters recalled Governor Gray Davis in October. The election asked two distinct questions: whether Davis should be removed and who should replace him if he was. Schwarzenegger received the most votes in the replacement contest. The inauguration therefore did not follow a normal four-year gubernatorial election. It put the winner of an unusual statewide process in office for the remainder of a term that had begun under another governor. That distinction explains both the speed of the transition and some of the political constraints the new administration inherited.

The Setting for the Recall

California was experiencing budget difficulties, and disputes over taxation and the state's handling of earlier problems created an opening for the recall campaign. Supporters gathered signatures to place the issue before voters. The wide field of replacement candidates attracted attention, as did Schwarzenegger's fame from bodybuilding and films. Celebrity helped him attract an audience, but the election cannot be explained without the ballot's structure and the problems that led many voters to support removing a sitting governor. A recognizable candidate entered an institutional process already under way.

What Changed on Inauguration Day

The oath gave Schwarzenegger the authority of the office, including powers over budgets, legislation and appointments subject to the state's rules. It did not give him unilateral control of the legislature or erase existing obligations. Plans announced during a campaign had to become measures that could survive negotiation, administration and sometimes court review. The inauguration marked the point when a campaign built around changing leadership became responsible for managing a large state. Public expectations could move much faster than the budget and legislative calendar.

What the Episode Shows About Recalls

A recall can interrupt a term without requiring voters to wait for the next general election. It also makes the removal decision and the choice of successor interact in unusual ways. A voter could have different judgments about the incumbent and each replacement candidate. California's result has since served as a reference point for debates about direct democracy, political accountability and the cost of governing in the aftermath of a special election. November 17 is the date that arrangement produced a transfer of authority, not the date the underlying disputes were resolved.