Could Ami Bera run against Kevin Kiley for CA House seat next year?
Rep. Ami Bera is exploring how to most effectively run for re-election, including a possible challenge to Rep. Kevin Kiley if Gov. Gavin Newsom’s new maps are approved, a congressional source said Friday.
The redistricting plan unveiled Friday is aimed at reducing the nine-member California Republican House delegation by adding Democrats to five GOP-held districts.
Kiley, a Republican, won his 2024 race by 11 percentage points. His current district includes the east Sacramento metro area, bumping up against Democrat Bera’s Sacramento County district.
Under the new map, parts of Bera’s current district would wind up on Kiley’s turf, and would also include include Folsom, which Bera represented before lines were redrawn after the 2020 census.
Bera, who is also considering running in his current Sixth District, would not comment on where he would run.
“I intend to continue representing the Sacramento region in the next Congress,” he said. ”Right now, we must stop Donald Trump and the Texas Republicans from gerrymandering their way to a House majority.”
Kiley sent a statement prior to the release of the map Friday, saying “Make no mistake, I will win reelection to the House regardless of the proposed changes to my district.”
He added that “ I fully expect that the beautiful Third District will remain exactly as it is. We will defeat Newsom’s sham initiative and vindicate the will of California voters.”
A Bera-Kiley race would pit two of northern California’s up-and-coming congressional stars in a match that would command national attention.
Bera, 60, former Sacramento County chief medical officer, was first elected to Congress in 2012. A physician, he’s been steadily gaining clout among House Democrats, and was involved in the strategy that led to the redistricting plan announced Friday. He’s the top Democrat on the House East Asia and Pacific Subcommittee.
Kiley, 40, was first elected in 2022. He chairs the House Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education Subcommittee.
The new maps are aimed at giving Democrats more winnable seats in next year’s mid-term elections. Democrats need a net gain of three seats next year to win control of the House, but Texas and some other Republican-led states are trying to redraw district lines to make GOP wins easier.
The next step for California is for the state legislature to approve a special election in November to approve the lines, which would be in effect until redrawn maps are implemented after the 2030 census.
This story was originally published August 15, 2025 at 5:52 PM with the headline "Could Ami Bera run against Kevin Kiley for CA House seat next year?."
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