By Last night, Los Altos-area residents along with those in all communities across California, watched election returns to see if Gray Davis would be removed from the governor's office and if so, who his replacement would be.

The results came too late to meet our Monday evening press deadline, but regardless, this entire exercise leaves a lot of food for thought.

First the good: The recall effort, though quite partisan in its origins, quickly spread across party lines including independents. Thirty-seven percent of those signing recall petitions were Democrats. Voter participation is the highest it’s been in recent history, with more expected to cast ballots than at the last presidential election. Santa Clara County increased by 6,500 registered voters in just one month. Perhaps the recall has fueled people’s interest in the issues our state faces.

But look at our leading choices among 135 candidates: A mind-mannered lieutenant governor with ties to Indian gaming; and a popular actor-muscleman with an Austrian accent and a penchant for glib one-liners.

It seems the recall came from us collectively pushing the panic button over the state’s economy and our ineffective government. The bumbling Gray Davis, not a born leader, is an easy scapegoat. And like in baseball, if the team stinks, we attempt to fire the coach.

Still, we have to wonder if we’ll see any improvement from the governor’s office if there’s a change. Will any one figurehead make a difference in addressing the budget deficit and turning around the economy? Probably not. One could easily argue the recall is an exercise in sheer frustration.

Perhaps a precedent has been set. What’s to stop the other party from drumming up its own recall campaign at the first sign of a stumble? Stay tuned.

At least locally, Los Altos voters will get to choose among city council candidates who have offered some specific goals. We’ve interviewed all the serious candidates for three open seats on the council in the Nov. 4 election and find intelligence, commitment and experience among all of them.

Although we will be offering endorsements for council and the Los Altos School District board in next week’s issue, we believe nearly all local candidates have what it takes to do a good job.

The main reason these people are running isn’t monsterous ego, which one could claim in the state race. All of the candidates have a passion for our community and they want to see our high quality of life stay that way. Amen.