Congressman Josh Harder wins California midterm in key clinch for House Democrats
Rep. Josh Harder will return to the U.S. House of Representatives after prevailing in a must-win district for Democrats in their bid to reduce a Republican majority.
Harder, D-Tracy, beat San Joaquin County supervisor Tom Patti, a Republican, in California’s new 9th Congressional District. The congressman had earned more than 56% of the votes when the Associated Press declared his win. More than 79% of the votes had been counted.
“I’m incredibly honored our community has put their faith in me once again,” Harder said in declaring victory. “There’s a huge amount of work that needs to get done, and I truly believe if we focus on common sense solutions we can get prices down, protect our water, and keep our community safe.”
The win comes as Republicans are on the cusp of taking control of the U.S. House of Representatives in 2023. As of Tuesday evening, Democrats won 209 seats; Republicans, 217.
A party needs 218 seats to hold the majority.
The slimmer the majority, the harder it will be for the Speaker of the House — like Republican Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield — to pass GOP-favored legislation.
Prior to the midterms, analysts weren’t entirely confident that Democrats would keep the 9th amid a predicted “red wave.” But that wave never came into fruition.
It could take days, or weeks, for a winner to emerge in other San Joaquin Valley races that analysts still say are toss-ups.
Congressman Josh Harder
Harder, 36, has represented the Central Valley in Congress since 2019, after he unseated Republican Rep. Jeff Denham in California’s 10th Congressional District. That district was spliced up through redistricting, the redrawing of legislative lines based on new census data, and will be phased out when new maps take hold in January.
The Turlock native currently represents the bottom third of the new 9th, which is centered around Stockton and covers most of San Joaquin County from Thornton to Tracy. It would have backed President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election and has more registered Democrats than Republicans.
A moderate Democrat, Harder has pushed for water access and health care gains in the Central Valley. He notably bucked party when calling for California’s gas tax to be suspended and advocating against the Delta tunnel project.
He sits on the House committees for appropriations (government spending) and agriculture.
Other Central Valley elections
Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Elk Grove, and McCarthy emerged as clear winners on election night. The next day, McCarthy announced his bid to become Speaker of the House.
Almost a week later, Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno, beat a Republican challenger in California’s 21st Congressional District.
Around Sacramento, Democratic Reps. Doris Matsui, Ami Bera and Mike Thompson all won in their districts.
The races in the 13th and 22nd are tight.
In the 13th, Assemblyman Adam Gray, D-Merced, pulled ahead of Republican farmer John Duarte for the first time since election night on Monday. Come Tuesday, Gray had 50.3% of the votes with almost 86% counted, per the AP.
In the 22nd, Assemblyman Rudy Salas, D-Bakersfield, remained just behind Rep. David Valadao, R-Hanford. Valadao had 52.4% of the votes with almost 64% counted, according to the AP.
This story was originally published November 15, 2022 at 7:21 PM with the headline "Congressman Josh Harder wins California midterm in key clinch for House Democrats."
