California Democrat joins race for tossup congressional seat. Will GOP be able to keep it?
One of California’s most politically vulnerable congressmen has a formidable new challenger.
Assemblyman Rudy Salas, D-Bakersfield, announced on Monday that he intends to challenge Rep. David Valadao, R-Hanford, to contest a southern San Joaquin Valley district where Democrats outnumber Republicans.
Valadao has represented California’s 21st congressional district intermittently since 2013, having lost his seat to Democrat TJ Cox in 2018, but then reclaiming the seat from Cox in 2020. Valadao won the district in the 2012, 2014 and 2016 elections easily.
Salas was the first Latino to serve on the Bakersfield city council, the city where he was born and worked in fields with his father before attending the University of California, Los Angeles. He worked two jobs to pay for school.
He won his seat in the 32nd Assembly District, which is part of the 21st congressional district, after Valadao vacated it to run for Congress.
“At the end of the day, I always want to help as many people as I can,” Salas said in an interview with The Fresno Bee on Sunday. “This is my family, my friends, my neighbors, my community. So I’m just excited about it.”
Before holding public office, Salas worked for then-Vice President Al Gore and at a local California State University, Bakersfield, program to help underserved children apply to college.
“One of the reasons why I’m running for this job is really for every person who wants their work recognized and respected,” he said.
Salas runs with the endorsements of both United Farm Workers and Dolores Huerta, the organization’s founder and renowned worker and women’s rights advocate; he has the support of a handful of other local leaders, including California Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, D-Lakewood, and Kern County Supervisor Leticia Perez.
California’s 21st district is home to one of the most competitive races in the 2022 election cycle that will determine whether Democrats or Republicans hold a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives. If Democrats have the majority, President Joe Biden’s administration could have an easier time passing legislation in line with its agenda on climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic and social infrastructure.
The district went for Biden in the 2020 presidential election by more than 10 percentage points, suggesting that the seat is in play.
And it has flipped before: Valadao won in a 2020 election that was too close to call for weeks against incumbent Cox, a Democrat. Cox had unseated Valadao in the 2018 election in a similarly tight race. Cox has not said whether or not he is running again.
Salas is the seventh challenger to enter this race. He joins Democrats Nicole Parra, a former California assemblywoman; Delano Mayor Bryan Osorio; and Angel Lara, a former staffer for Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. Republicans Adam Medeiros, a businessman; Martha Flores-Gibson, a consultant; and Chris Mathys, a pro-Trump businessman, who are also vying for Valadao’s spot.
Valadao is positioning himself as a moderate Republican, having been one of 10 representatives who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump for inciting an insurrection at the nation’s Capitol on Jan. 6.
Redistricting, the process by which congressional districts are redrawn based on population data gathered during the Census, could also alter the race. California will lose a seat in the House because of sluggish population growth over the past decade, dropping to a delegation of 52. Redrawn lines could shift local voter demographics.
Salas hopes to extend his fight for helping people in the Central Valley in Washington, D.C. He recently brought $50 million for local projects through assembly legislation. And he welcomes constituents saying “hi” to him in Costco, like a resident did three weeks ago.
Salas highlighted his “no” vote in 2017 against a package of gas tax and vehicle fee increases that former Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law, signaling that he’ll break with Democrats from time to time.
“I’m in line and I don’t even know this individual, but they just come up and they’re like, ‘Hey, I just want to shake your hand; I just really remember you standing up for us and voting against the gas tax,’” Salas said. “So, even though that’s been a couple of years now, people still continue to thank me for that for standing up for them.”
While he voted against the gas tax, the National Republican Congressional Committee, in response to Salas’ announcement, said he voted for tax increases in other recent measures, including to limit some employer tax incentives and suspend some tax relief for businesses.
“Californians are suffering because of a pandemic and Rudy Salas’ response was to raise taxes by billions of dollars. The last thing the Central Valley needs is another tax-raising liberal politician,” wrote NRCC Spokeswoman Torunn Sinclair.
This story was originally published October 18, 2021 at 8:43 AM.
