WATCH: White House press sec says that Biden administration opposes the recall election of Gov. Gavin Newsom, which 1.4 million Californians support

As of Sunday, petitioners have gathered more than 1.4 million signatures out of the necessary 1,495,709 to get the measure on the ballot. The group aims to collect 2 million signatures before the March 17 deadline.

Newsom's approval numbers fell below 50 percent last week, down to 46 percent from a previous high of 64 percent following public disapproval of his handling of the pandemic.

The effort gained momentum after Newsom ordered a second lockdown in response to a surge in COVID cases, meanwhile, the Governor was discovered unmasked, indoors at a fancy Napa Valley restaurant for a birthday dinner for a lobbyist which he attended with members of the California medical advisory committee.

Newsom's orders closed businesses around the Golden State but left an exemption for Hollywood production to continue. Desptie the lockdowns, cases, hospitalizations and deaths continued to climb until California became the epicenter of the epidemic in the US.

Former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer recently announced that he will run against Newsom if a recall election is set.