Video News Clips: In Their Own Words

‘The View’ Co-Host Slams Gavin Newsom’s ‘Wholly Irresponsible’ Fear Mongering About Future Elections

[Screenshot/The View]

“The View” co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin sparred with her fellow panelists on Friday as she criticized Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s dire claims about future elections under President Donald Trump.

Newsom warned on Thursday that the 2028 presidential election will be a “[Russian President Vladimir] Putin election” if the country does not “stand up” to Trump, and stated that state officials will watch the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) election observers. Griffin stated that it is “wholly irresponsible” for Newsom to take this action and make these claims without any evidence.

“I think it is wholly irresponsible for the governor of the most populous state, who by the way oversees elections in his own state. He oversees the cybersecurity infrastructure,” Griffin said. “He oversees the Secretary of State, down to poll watchers, to election workers. Gavin Newsom has a lot of power in this. He could at minimum say, ‘I can promise you California will have a free and fair election election, and I’ll work with every governor to make sure that there’s no efforts to undermine them.'”

WATCH:

Voters in California will vote on Proposition 50, which would cause state officials to redraw congressional district maps in favor of Democrats starting in 2026. The proposal could unseat five of the nine Republican House members in the California state Legislature.

Griffin said that rather than gerrymandering the state, Newsom should be assuring his constituents that he will use his power to make sure elections remain free and fair.

“So everyone is angry when Texas redraws congressional maps to add more Republican seats,” Griffin continued. “They’re cheating. It’s rigged. So California responds by cheating and rigging it, by adding more Democrats to the seat. So what are they supposed to do? Are they supposed to just let them do it? No, you’re supposed to safely secure your elections and tell your voters you can trust voting in California.” 

Co-host Sunny Hostin claimed that Newsom cannot promise fair elections when the Trump administration is sending federal monitors.

California has faced scrutiny for its lack of voter ID laws and for taking too long to certify votes. Newsom signed a law in 2021 that made universal mail-in voting permanent and required counties to automatically mail ballots to all active, registered voters. He also approved SB 1174, which prohibited local governments from requiring voters to present identification when casting their ballots at the polls.

The DOJ made the decision to send election observers in response to California GOP Chairwoman Corrin Rankin’s request, where she stated in a letter that she is concerned about certain counties.