The failed attempt to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom cost California taxpayers $276 million

• California Gov. Gavin Newsom fended off the recall election campaign against him.
• The state, political parties, and individual donors flooded the short, failed election with funds.
• Here’s how much money was spent in the California recall election.
• See more stories on Insider’s business page.

Californians decided that Gov. Gavin Newsom would continue to serve as their governor after a costly recall election campaign. The race was called by Insider and Decision Desk HQ at 8:21 p.m. PT, projecting the “no” voters as the winners.

Newsom survived the recall, facing off against and beating 46 other candidates in a race that polled closely at times, and which political experts expected Newsom to survive.

But the money spent by California and money raised by factions in support and against the recall shows how pricey the failed recall election was.

Here are some of the key figures:

• $276 million: The amount of money the recall election cost the state of California, according to the State Finance Department.
• $80.5 million: The total amount in contributions from those in opposition to the recall going back to January of 2021, per the California Secretary of State’s website. (This includes donations going to multiple committees against the recall.)
• $16.5 million: The total amount in contributions from those in favor of the recall election dating back to January 2021, per the California Secretary of State’s website. (This includes donations going to multiple committees for the recall.)
• $13.8 million: The figure that Larry Elder, the leading opponent against Newsom, raised in the election.
• $9.7 million: That’s the amount of money candidate John Cox, the recall effort’s largest single donor, raised for the election, according to the Los Angeles Times. Cox also ran as a candidate and lost in the recall, as well as in the general 2018 election.
• $3.1 million: That’s how much Netflix CEO Reed Hastings raised in the effort opposing the recall, making him the largest single donor against it, according to the Los Angeles Times.

According to the LA Times, overall, $83 million was raised in opposition to the recall and $45.2 million was raised in support of it.