Majority of voters are supporting the incumbent, preliminary election results show.
Incumbent Rep. David Valadao (R-Calif.) may have bested his opponent in a rematch of a 2022 race for California’s 22nd District in the San Joaquin Valley.
Valadao has approximately 54 percent of the vote, while Democrat Rudy Salas has 46 percent, according to unofficial preliminary results as of 9:45 p.m. PT on Nov. 5.
The district includes Kings County and parts of Tulare and Kern counties.
Official results are expected in the coming weeks, and the secretary of state has up to 30 days to certify the election results.
In the run-up to Tuesday, recent polling showed the Democratic challenger with a 2-point lead over Valadao, at 47 to 45 percent, respectively.
Valadao campaigned as a “proud son of the Central Valley,” while Salas, who previously served five terms in the state assembly, pointed to his own beginnings laboring in agricultural fields with his father before attending the University of California–Los Angeles (UCLA).
The victor will represent nearly 800,000 residents in the Golden State’s most productive agricultural region.
Their match in 2022 was decided by fewer than 4,000 votes.
Valadao has served off and on in the position since 2012—losing the seat in 2018 but recapturing it two years later. He served two years in the state legislature as an assemblyman before being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
The congressman, born and raised in the area he represents, has a background in agriculture and dairy operations.
He won the primary by nearly 1,000 votes out of nearly 63,000 cast.
Salas, a lifelong resident of the Central Valley, worked in the farm fields and in construction with his father. He served five terms in the state Assembly.
Salas was supported by Gov. Gavin Newsom, U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), and the United Farm Workers, among others.
Democrats outnumber Republicans in the district 41 percent to 28 percent, with 23 percent of voters having no party preference.
The median age of residents is about 30, and males outnumber females by three percentage points. Almost 17,000 people who live in the district are military veterans.
Beige Luciano-Adams contributed to this report.