GOP lawmaker ousts fellow Republican in gerrymandered California district
California voters approved the Democratic-backed redistricting plan that combined portions of the two lawmakers' previous districts into a single seat, setting up the rare intraparty contest in one of the state’s remaining Republican strongholds.
Key points
- CALIFORNIA VOTERS DECIDE WHO WILL SUCCEED NEWSOM IN CONSEQUENTIAL GOVERNOR'S RACE Calvert against Kim was the lone GOP vs.
- Those are heavily Republican stretches of the Central Valley and Sierra Nevada foothills — rural agricultural and mountain country well inland, roughly between San Francisco and Los Angeles but far from both coastal metros in the western parts of the state.
- Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., is clinging to a narrow lead of just 3,384 votes over Democratic challenger Tessa Lynn Hodge in California's 23rd Congressional District, a High Desert seat in San Bernardino County that was rated Solid R by the Fox News Power Rankings before the midterms.
Young Kim, R-Calif., in the 40th Congressional District race called Monday night, ostensibly forcing two incumbents to battle for one seat in the gerrymandered district.
Additional details
- Darrell Issa, R-Calif., did not seek re-election and his former seat flipped to blue under the new map, with Democrat Marni von Wilpert defeating Republican Jim Desmond by nearly 20 points.
- BLUE WAVE NEARLY SWALLOWED SOME OF AMERICA'S REDDEST STATES AS ELECTION DATA EXPOSES GOP'S CLOSE CALLS Four other Republicans from California are leaving Congress in January 2027.
- The district covers suburban communities in eastern Orange County and stretches into the Inland Empire in western Riverside County — southeast of Los Angeles.
- With ballots still being counted, Obernolte holds just a 1.6-point edge — about 50.8% to 49.2% — after winning the district by more than 20 points in 2024.
- Kevin Kiley, I-Calif., who left the Republican Party to try to keep his seat as an independent, lost by more than 17 points to Democrat Richard Pan.
How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →
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