Newsom’s team had scrambled to correct an error that will now deprive him of his party preference on ballots for the Sept. 14 recall. Newsom sued Secretary of State Shirley Weber in late June, arguing that the law imposes a needlessly early deadline for recall targets to request their party designation and that voters deserve to see that information. After hearing arguments Friday, however, Judge James P. Arguelles ruled late Monday against Newsom. Arguelles had already played an instrumental role in the recall by granting proponents four additional months to gather signatures — an extension that ultimately coincided with the worst months of the pandemic in California. Arguelles disagreed with an argument from Newsom's attorney that party status was a vital piece of information for voters, writing that the law offered candidates "discretion to inform recall voters about their party preferences, as opposed to imposing a requirement that voters be so informed.” Arguelles rejected the notion a "good faith error" on Newsom's part should spare him.