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The races to represent California on the statewide and national stages are as important as any other in November’s election.
Sacramento County voters will elect three members of the U.S. House of Representatives and three state Assembly members this November. Here’s a quick look at who’s running in each race.
California state Assembly
District 6
The 6th Assembly District spans from Sacramento’s Land Park neighborhood to Natomas, including downtown and Midtown, East Sacramento, and parts of Arden-Arcade. It’s currently represented by Democratic State Assembly member Kevin McCarty who is running for mayor of Sacramento.
After a crowded primary race, Republican Nikki Ellis and Democrat Maggy Krell are the two candidates advancing to the general election.
Ellis is an international trade advocate and has worked for the California Chamber of Commerce. CalChamber represents businesses and employers throughout the state. Her campaign website lists affordability and homelessness as the main issues driving her candidacy. Ellis is running as a Republican.
Krell currently serves as a Deputy Attorney General in the California Department of Justice. She’s prosecuted cases relating to human trafficking and immigration and has been a lawyer for Planned Parenthood. Public safety, youth services, homelessness, economic conditions, and reproductive freedom are among the issues listed on her campaign website. Krell is running as a Democrat.
—Laura Fitzgerald
District 7
Assembly member Josh Hoover is the Republican incumbent and is seeking his second term in the state Assembly.
Hoover, 36, was first elected in 2022 in a close race. In his two years in the Assembly, he’s authored legislation banning cell phone use in classrooms and improving access to teen domestic violence education.
Democratic challenger Porsche Middleton is a member of the Sacramento Planning Commission and former deputy director of Sacramento Self-Help Housing. She also serves on the Citrus Heights City Council, where she’s worked on the Sunrise Mall revitalization project, according to her campaign website.
California’s 7th Assembly District includes much of northeastern Sacramento County, including Fair Oaks, Rancho Cordova, Folsom, Citrus Heights and North Highlands. It also includes portions of Rosemont and Carmichael.
—Claire Morgan
District 10
Residents of southern Sacramento County will choose between Assembly member Stephanie Nguyen, Democratic incumbent, and retired engineer Vinaya Singh in the race for the 10th Assembly District.
Nguyen was elected to the role in 2022, ending a 5-year stint on the Elk Grove City Council. Prior to her time in Elk Grove, Nguyen was the director of Asian Resources, Inc., a nonprofit which provides social services to Asian Americans in Sacramento.
Since she joined the Assembly, she’s authored legislation that has provided a defense for elderly people who are suffering from financial abuse and has allowed abortion training for out-of-state students where the practice is banned.
Republican and political newcomer Singh grew up in India and worked at the Indian Space Research Organization before moving to the United States, where he worked as an IT Specialist.
Singh says he would focus on immigration, homelessness and crime if elected, and says he has a “vision to Make California Great Again,” according to his campaign website.
The district, whose boundaries changed in 2022 due to redistricting, covers the entire city of Elk Grove and portions of Sacramento including Oak Park, South Sacramento and the Pocket. It also includes the unincorporated areas of Florin and Vineyard.
—Keyshawn Davis
U.S. House of Representatives
District 3
U.S. Representative Kevin Kiley is the Republican incumbent and is seeking his second term in the House. Kiley, 39, who lives in Roseville, previously served in the California State Assembly from 2016 to 2022.
During his time in D.C., Kiley has served on committees including Judiciary, Education and Workforce. He has focused on efforts to reduce inflation and increase school choice, according to his House website.
Democratic challenger Jessica Morse worked for four years as deputy secretary for Forest and Wildland Resilience at the California Natural Resources Agency. Morse, 42, and also a Roseville resident, currently serves on the U.S. Wildland Fire Mitigation and Management Commission and has a background in national security, according to her campaign website.
In 2018, she ran against incumbent Rep. Tom McClintock for California’s 4th Congressional district. McClintock won with 54.1% of the vote.
Morse gained 42.1% of the vote in the March primary election for California’s 3rd Congressional District compared with Kiley’s 55.9% in a three-person field. The district includes Roseville, Grass Valley, Truckee, and numerous Sierra Nevada communities.
—Chris Nichols
District 6
U.S. Representative Ami Bera is the Democratic incumbent. The Elk Grove resident is seeking his seventh two-year term in the House after being first elected in 2012.
Bera, 59, has served on the Science, Space and Technology committee and Foreign Affairs committee, among others, during his time in Congress. His priorities include promoting economic growth, innovation and creating affordable healthcare, his biography says.
Before serving in Washington D.C., Bera worked as the chief medical officer for Sacramento County and later as associate dean for admissions at the UC Davis School of Medicine, according to his biography.
Christine Bish, meanwhile, is a Sacramento resident and has a background as a realtor and financial investigator, according to her website. She also served as vice chair of the Oakmont High School Site Council in Roseville.
While running in the March primary, Bish gained 20.1% of the vote compared with Bera’s 51.8%, in a field of six candidates. On her website, Bish said, if elected, she would “advocate for lower taxes, cost-effective educational solutions, water quality and flood management, a comprehensive approach to homelessness, an end to sanctuary cities, and the restoration of Second Amendment freedoms.”
California’s 6th Congressional District sits entirely inside Sacramento County. It includes the north side of the city of Sacramento along with Rancho Cordova, Citrus Heights, Rio Linda, Elverta, Arden-Arcade, Antelope, Foothill Farms, North Highlands, and most of Fair Oaks.
—Chris Nichols
District 7
U.S. Representative Doris Matsui is the Democratic incumbent and is seeking her 11th two-year term in the House.
Matsui, 79, was first elected in 2005 in a special election after her husband, Representative Bob Matsui, died two months after winning his 14th House race.
During her time in Congress, Matsui has advocated for affordable health care and Sacramento’s flood protection. She sits on committees overseeing energy and commerce along with communications and technology.
Republican Challenger Tom Silva served as a member of the armed forces for 33 years and on the school board in his hometown of Galt for four years, according to his campaign website. Silva said online he is “committed to protecting parents rights, creating jobs and economic opportunities, and public safety.”
He gained 30.9% of the vote in the March primary compared with Matsui’s 56.5% in a field of two Democrats and one Republican.
California’s 7th Congressional District includes central and south Sacramento neighborhoods including Downtown, Midtown, Arden-Arcade, Lemon Hill and Florin along with the cities of West Sacramento and Elk Grove.
—Chris Nichols
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