You bet there was cheating. but, Elder sealed his fate when he said the Nov 22 elections were not stolen.
Saying the 2020 elections were not stolen was just one place where Elder went off the rails. The interview question about transgenders, talking about sex education in schools, those were things for the future. We in California are pissed about masks. He should have answered more questions with platitudes about caring and then gone right back to covid response. That would have won it. He was campaigning to win in a field of hundreds but neglected to campaign about the recall itself.