Wilson Recall Effort

Now that Jesse Jackson is mounting a recall campaign against Gov. Pete Wilson (July 27), watch the governor’s popularity among Republicans skyrocket.

Here’s what will more than likely happen. Jackson will make a lot of noise. He’ll attract the usual assortment of dimwits and we’ll see him and his evil legions on TV on a regular basis. The pollsters will go out and ask the wrong questions and will arrive at results that show many more people actually support Jackson than actually do.

But out in the world--in middle-class living rooms--there will be a seething and quiet anger and a growing support for Wilson. There will be a closing of ranks among Republicans.

I see certain traits in the governor that I see in a lot of Marines. It’s a quiet strength that makes a lot of people underestimate them until they start pushing too hard.

H. MILLARD

Costa Mesa

* Your article states that “the signatures of about 600,000 registered voters would be necessary to get a recall on the ballot.”

California Constitution, Art. II, Sec. 14 (b) states that signatures equal to 12% of the vote last cast for that office are required. There were 8,665,156 votes cast for governor in 1994. Twelve percent is 1,039,819, and that is the number of valid signatures required to recall against Gov. Wilson.

By way of comparison, that is a third more than the 8% required to qualify a constitutional amendment, which may be why no petition has ever been qualified to recall a statewide official.

TONY QUINN

Sacramento