Nearly 670,000 signatures validated in Newsom recall effort

• The first and only gubernatorial recall that has qualified for the ballot in California was in 2003 and resulted in then-Gov. Gray Davis (D) being replaced with Arnold Schwarzenegger (R).

The state of play: Of the 1,094,457 signatures submitted, 798,310 have been reviewed with 668,202 signatures deemed valid and 130,108 invalid.

• There are still 296,147 signatures waiting to be reviewed, but even if they all are validated, the total would not hit the necessary number.
• Not so fast: Anne Dunsmore, a recall campaign organizer, told Politico there are still signatures left to be reported, saying that 1.2 million have been submitted and roughly 1.7 million in total have been collected.
• The recall effort has received national attention, with the Republican Republican National Committee spending $250,000 to promote the campaign.

What to watch: "The next official state status report is scheduled for March 18 — the day after the deadline for proponents to submit signatures. County election officials will then need [to] submit results to the secretary of state’s office, which will announce if the recall has made the ballot," Politico writes.