“Three things can happen in this recall,” Wilson says, “and two of them are bad.”

The one good thing for the GOP would be if Newsom got bounced. But even then, the timing would be bad. A new Republican governor would have to immediately begin running for reelection in 2022.

And, as Wilson adds in an understatement, “There’s no guarantee he could hold the office.” Not in this blue state in a high-turnout general election.

One bad thing that could happen for the GOP would be if an even more liberal Democrat entered the recall race and won.

“You’ve got to think this thing through,” says Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn. “What happens if [Assemblywoman] Lorena Gonzalez runs?”