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SANTA ANA — California’s Libertarian Party is considering dropping its candidate for governor because he spit on a radio talk show host. 

The party’s 12-member executive committee was scheduled to meet Saturday to vote on whether to rescind support for Gary Copeland, who admitted to The Orange County Register he spit on the radio host. 

“We were mortified when we first heard of this. It takes 10 votes of the executive committee, and we have the votes,” said party chairman Aaron Starr. “The party has to take a stand on this.” 

Copeland said he spat on KABC radio host Mark Whitman after Whitman switched off Copeland’s microphone during an interview Sunday at the station’s Los Angeles studio, the newspaper reported Thursday. 

The host turned off the mike when Copeland was recounting past abuses of immigrants and suggested that Whitman supported such treatment. Copeland got up to leave, heard several on-air comments from Whitman, then turned and spit on him. 

“Since I could not say what I believed, I thought I would show what I believed,” Copeland said.