Democratic incumbent Harder, Republican Howze headed for November showdown
Democratic incumbent Josh Harder held a marginal lead against Republican challenger Ted Howze in Tuesday’s primary for the 10th Congressional District, which encompasses Stanislaus and southern San Joaquin counties.
With 100 percent of the precincts reporting by early Wednesday morning, Harder had 29,683 votes to Howze’s 27,987 in a race among six candidates. Republican Bob Elliott — a San Joaquin County supervisor and former Tracy councilman — was in third place with 10,601 votes.
As the top two vote-getters, Howze and Harder will face each other in the November election.
The results are based on the tally of 74,637 votes, according to the California Secretary of State’s office. That represents a voter turnout of about 20 percent, but thousands of ballots remain to be counted. For context, voter turnout was 44.4 percent in Stanislaus and 41.7 percent in San Joaquin counties in the last presidential primary in June 2016.
Howze, 53, is a former Turlock councilman. He did not return a phone call Tuesday night seeking comment. And his primary night party at Ten Pin Fun Center in Turlock was closed to the press, according to a campaign spokeswoman.
But his campaign issued a statement in which he expressed his gratitude to voters and other supporters and said his campaign is focused on affordable health care and lowering the cost of living. He also has said that one of his top priorities is securing the nation’s borders.
“I want to thank everyone who has supported me to this point,” Howze said in the statement, “but this is just the first step. Moving forward to November, we welcome everyone who wants to see positive change and (is) ready to give the D.C. political class a swift kick ... .”
Harder, 33, appeared briefly at a party at Greens on Tenth in downtown Modesto that drew more than 100 people. He spoke for a few minutes before leaving to catch a flight to Washington, D.C., ahead of a Wednesday House vote on emergency measures to deal with the coronavirus.
He said in an interview with reporters that he would campaign for re-election on his record and by focusing on the issues that matter most to Valley residents, including high-paying jobs, affordable health care and securing the region’s water future. He said Valley residents are focused on these issues and what is in the Valley’s best interests and not partisan ideology.
Harder was elected in November 2018, defeating longtime Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Denham in a race that was part of the Democrats retaking the House. Howze came in third place in the June 2018 primary.
Harder agrees to debate Howze
Harder’s campaign said Wednesday that he has agreed to participate in debates being planned by The Bee and Turlock Journal ahead of the November election. The details — including dates and locations — have not yet been worked out.
“Being accountable and transparent is part of the job,” Harder said in statement about the two debates. “In addition to my 18 town halls and dozens of office hour events, being accessible directly to voters at debates is also important.”
Howze’s campaign manager said in an email that he has not seen any formal invitations when asked whether Howze would participate.
The 10th Congressional District is purple with 38.4 percent of its registered voters Democrats, 34.3 percent Republicans and 21 percent No Party Preference voters as of Feb. 18, according to the Secretary of State’s office.
Republican Marla Sousa Livengood was in fourth place with 3.4 percent of the vote. Democrat Mike Barkley was in fifth place with 3.1 percent of the vote, and Democrat Ryan Blevins was in sixth place with 2 percent of the vote.
Statements subject to scrutiny
Howze faced scrutiny over two claims he made during his campaign.
He alleged during a January candidates debate in Modesto that Harder’s office had failed last year to get medical help through the VA for a then 100-year-old World War II veteran. The allegation did not stand up. The veteran’s daughter later told The Bee she and her father did not seek help from Harder’s office.
And at the same debate, Howze said he had moved back to Turlock from Stockton. Stockton is not part of the 10th Congressional District, but there is no requirement that candidates live in the district they want to represent.
The Elliott campaign later brought The Bee an investigation it said showed that Howze continued to live in Brookside, an exclusive gated community in Stockton. And several neighbors who live closest to the Turlock home said it was vacant.
Howze’s campaign manager said Howze splits his time between the two residences while his wife continues to live in the Brookside home.
Howze served on the Turlock City Council from 2006 to 2010. He was on the city’s Planning Commission before that. He moved to Stockton in 2015 before he said he moved back to Turlock. He is a large-animal veterinarian and his practice is based in Turlock.
Harder grew up in Turlock and graduated from Modesto High. He has degrees from Stanford and Harvard and was a venture capitalist before returning here to run for Congress.
This story was originally published March 3, 2020 at 10:26 PM.
