How many people has Gavin Newsom pardoned since taking office?
Executive summary
Gavin Newsom’s cumulative pardons since taking office in January 2019 vary across news reports because outlets update totals after each clemency round; contemporaneous reporting shows a steady climb from about 140 pardons in late 2022 to 181 by April 2024, 224 by April 2025, and — in the most recent source provided — 247 pardons as of a September 2025 clemency announcement [1] [2] [3] [4]. The best single figure available in the supplied reporting is 247 pardons, but that reflects reporting tied to a specific September 2025 action and may have changed after that date [4].
1. The data trail: how counts grew over Newsom’s tenure
Early aggregated reports peg Newsom at 140 pardons (with 123 commutations and 35 reprieves) after a December 2022 batch announcement, reflecting totals reported by multiple outlets at the time [1] [5] [6]. By April 2024, coverage of a large spring clemency round updated that cumulative total to 181 pardons and 141 commutations — a jump that many local outlets and advocacy groups documented as part of a 55-person clemency package [2] [7]. Reporting in April 2025 covering another round put the total at 224 pardons and 150 commutations, showing the same pattern: Newsom has repeatedly announced sizable batches of pardons and commutations, and outlets update cumulative totals after each release [3]. The most recent article in the set supplied here, from September 2025, reports 247 pardons since 2019 — the highest single total among the provided sources [4].
2. Why totals differ: timing, definitions, and reporting choices
Discrepancies in counts across outlets reflect straightforward factors: each clemency announcement increases the cumulative tally and some outlets publish immediately after a batch while others update later, creating an observed stepwise progression in the record [1] [2] [3] [4]. There is also room for definitional slippage in headlines — some pieces conflate pardons, commutations and reprieves when summarizing clemency activity, while others separate them out, which can confuse headline counts if a reader assumes “clemency” equals “pardons” alone [8] [2]. Sources range from local papers and advocacy groups to syndicated AP stories; each relies on gubernatorial press releases or parole board recommendations but may emphasize different numbers when quickly reporting a new round [7] [1].
3. Political framing and implicit agendas in coverage
Coverage varies not only in arithmetic but in tone: some outlets present Newsom’s clemency record as rehabilitation-focused criminal-justice reform designed to remove barriers to reentry, citing the governor’s rationale about accountability and public safety [8] [2], while opinion pieces and critics use the totals to argue Newsom is “trigger-happy” or undermining public safety — language that frames the same raw totals as a political liability [8] [9]. Advocacy organizations and the governor’s own communications emphasize restorative narratives and the practical impacts of pardons (employment, immigration relief), which explains why state releases and reform-minded outlets highlight ever-larger cumulative totals after each clemency round [10] [2].
4. Best answer and limits of the record provided
Based on the latest source in the materials provided, Newsom had granted 247 pardons since taking office in 2019 as reported in a September 2025 article about commutations and pardons [4]. Earlier contemporaneous counts in the supplied reporting show 224 pardons by April 2025 [3], 181 by April 2024 [2], and about 140 by December 2022 [1]. This account is limited to the supplied sources: if a subsequent clemency round occurred after the September 2025 item, that would not be reflected here, and primary official tallies from the governor’s office or the Board of Parole Hearings would provide the most authoritative, up-to-the-minute total beyond these news reports [4] [3].