Randy Villegas flips California's 22nd District, ending David Valadao's tenure

Randy Villegas defeated Republican Rep. David Valadao in California's 22nd Congressional District on Tuesday. The 22nd District covers Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, and Tulare counties. Valadao, the last remaining House Republican who voted to impeach President Donald Trump, had previously won multiple close races in the area. He lost his bid for reelection.

Villegas is a progressive endorsed by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. Matt Lesenyie, a political psychology professor at Cal State Long Beach, said Valadao tried to keep President Trump and culture war issues at a distance. Lesenyie noted that this strategy failed to protect the seat. "His arm wasn't long enough," Lesenyie said. Voter registration data showed Republicans were vastly outnumbered by Democrats in the district before Election Day.

The result is part of a wider national trend. Democrats gained control of the U.S. House with a large margin. California's Democratic leadership had convinced voters in 2025 to approve a partisan redistricting plan. This map redrew congressional boundaries to make seats easier for Democrats to win. The strategy appears to have succeeded in preliminary returns.

Other redistricting efforts in GOP-led states did not produce the same results. In Texas, Democrats unseated Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz while incumbents Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez won reelection. In Alabama, Democratic Rep. Shomari Figures won despite a court-approved map favored by Republicans. In Missouri, voters flipped a Republican district held by an incumbent for more than a decade.

In California's 23rd District, the race was closer. Incumbent Republican Rep. Jay Obernolte held a slim lead over Democratic challenger Tessa Lynn Hodge as of Wednesday morning. The district includes Kern, Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties. It contains nearly 24,000 more registered Republicans than Democrats. Obernolte reported having $1.4 million in cash on hand. Hodge reported $12,000 in mid-October. Michael Trujillo, a Democratic strategist in Los Angeles, called the race a key example of a national blue wave affecting seats that were not primary targets.

In the governor's race, former Biden Cabinet Secretary Xavier Becerra won. The race was called at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, before vote tallies appeared on the secretary of state's website. Dan Schnur, a political messaging professor at USC and UC Berkeley, observed that California was already at high tide before the national surge arrived.

Rep. Robert Garcia of Long Beach is expected to lead the House Oversight Committee. He posted "Lawyer up" on his official X account after the election. Schnur predicted Garcia would become very famous in the new majority. Hakeem Jeffries of New York is poised to become the first Black speaker of the House. The party plans to focus on affordability and holding the Trump administration accountable.

The 2028 presidential race may also be affected by these results. New names like James Talarico, who flipped a Senate seat in Texas, have emerged. Annie Andrews became the first Democrat to win a U.S. Senate seat in South Carolina since 1998. Trujillo said Andrews is now an important power broker for potential candidates like Kamala Harris or Gavin Newsom.