California’s oddest-shaped congressional district’s also its reddest. Why that’s important
The redrawing of new legislative districts across California left the state with one less seat in Congress, and in the process carved Fresno County and the central San Joaquin Valley into five different districts – including the most convoluted on the state’s political map.
Of California’s 52 districts, the newly drawn 20th District is one of only seven in which Republicans have a current advantage in voter registration over Democrats. That’s almost opposite the statewide picture of voter registration in which Democrats outnumber Republicans by almost two to one.
More than half of the district’s registered 444,000 voters live in Kern County, and most of the district’s geography covers Kern and eastern Tulare County. But one lanky limb of the district also stretches across part of eastern Fresno County into Clovis and part of the city of Fresno.
Another long, bony finger meanders across northern Tulare and Kings counties, taking in the entire city of Lemoore and parts of Hanford, Visalia and Tulare.
What the district’s odd shape means is that Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, is likely to become the representative in Congress for a good chunk of Fresno, Clovis, and other cities that previously were not a part of his district. McCarthy, the minority leader in the House of Representatives, faces a field of four challengers in the June 7 primary election, from which the top two vote-getters will square off in the November midterm election.
All five candidates are from Kern County. In addition to McCarthy, they are two Democrats, meteorologist Ben Dewell of Tehachapi and teacher Marisa Wood of Bakersfield; and two Republicans, engineer and economist James Davis and retired accountant James Macauley, both from Bakersfield.
Most of the other congressional districts in the region are more straightforward, although the 5th District stretches through much of the Sierra Nevada range on the east side of the Valley from east of Sacramento all the way into northeastern Fresno County. The bulk of the district’s registered voters are concentrated to the north, with only about 101,000 of the 484,000 voters in Fresno and Madera counties.
5th Congressional District
Republicans also outnumber Democrats in the 5th District, 42.1% to 31.7%.
Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Rocklin, has represented much of the 5th District’s territory in the past, but he’s facing five other candidates in the June primary. Three are Republicans, including Fresno County Supervisor Nathan Magsig of Clovis. The other Republicans are David Main, a physician from El Dorado Hills, and Modesto businessman Kelsten Charles Obert.
There’s also one Democrat, Michael J. “Mike” Barlkey, a lawyer/accountant/programmer from Manteca, and editor Steve Wozniak, an editor and father who does not claim a political party affiliation.
13th Congressional District
California’s 13th Congressional District encompasses all of Merced County and parts of Fresno, Madera, San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties. The heaviest concentrations of voters are in Merced and Stanislaus counties.
Democratic registration in the district is almost 43%, compared to 28.4% for Republicans.
There’s no incumbent in the 13th, and five candidates are vying to be one of the two who will face off in November. They are Democrats Phil Arballo, a small business owner from Fresno who unsuccessfully challenged then-Rep. Devin Nunes in 2020 in the Fresno- and Tulare-centric 22nd District, and state Assembly member Adam Gray of Merced.
Three Republicans in the field are John Duarte, a farmer and businessman from Hughson; teacher/business owner David A. Giglio of Madera; and business owner Diego Javier Martinez of Merced.
21st Congressional District
What is now the 21st District includes parts of Fresno and Tulare counties, with portions of the cities of Fresno and Visalia and communities including Sanger, Farmersville, Fowler, Selma, Kingsburg, Reedley, Orange Cove, Parlier, Exeter, Farmersville, Dinuba and Woodlake.
Democrats outnumber Republicans in the district, 43.7% to 26.3%.
Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno, has most recently represented the 16th District which included Merced and parts of Madera and Fresno Counties. He’s facing three candidates in the redrawn 21st District: Democrat Eric Garcia, a therapist from Clovis; Republican Michael Maher, an aviation business owner from Kingsburg; and Republican Matt Stoll, a small businss owner from Visalia.
22nd Congressional District
The new 22nd Congressional District includes portions of Kings, Tulare and Kern counties, with almost two-thirds of the voters concentrated in Kern County.
Rep. David Valadao, R-Hanford, lost his 21st District seat in 2018 and won it back in 2020 when the district included part of Fresno County. He’s running in the redrawn 22nd against three other candidates.
One is a Democrat, state Assmbly member Rudy Salas of Bakersfield. The two other Republicans in the field are Chris Mathys, a businessman and cattle rancher from Fresno; and Adam Medeiros, a businessman from Hanford.
Democrats hold a 17-percentage-point advantage in voter registration in the district, at 43.1% compared to 26.1% for Republicans.
