# Ex-Dem Senate leader asks California Supreme Court to block Gavin Newsom’s death row commutations

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/ex-dem-senate-leader-asks-california-supreme-court-to-block-gavin-newsoms-death-row-commutations/
- Published: 2026-11-10T02:00:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-10T02:25:35+00:00
- Original publisher: New York Post (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://nypost.com/2026/11/09/us-news/ex-senate-leader-asks-court-to-halt-gavin-newsoms-death-row-relief/
- Topics: Government, Politics, World

## Key points

- Romero asks California’s Supreme Court to block the commutations.
- She says 382 cases require justices’ approval.
- Newsom says the move reflects California’s opposition to executions.

## Summary

Former California Senate Majority Leader Gloria Romero is asking the state Supreme Court to block Governor Gavin Newsom’s plan to commute the death sentences of all 548 people on the state’s death row. She argues that the decision was politically motivated and that the Constitution limits the governor’s power to commute sentences for people with multiple felony convictions.

Newsom says he acted because the state should not carry out executions, and the commutations would change the sentences to life in prison without parole. Romero says 382 inmates fall under a constitutional provision requiring the approval of four Supreme Court justices; her online petition had more than 1,000 signatures as of Monday. Newsom is due to leave office in January and has considered a possible 2028 presidential run.

---
Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.