The race for the 13th Congressional District, expected to be one of the closest races in the nation, hasn’t turned out to be as close as it was in 2022.
Rep. John Duarte (R-Modesto), the incumbent who beat former Assemblymember Adam Gray (D-Merced) by a scant 564 votes two years ago, is ahead by nearly 2,800 votes in their 2024 rematch.
According to the California Secretary of State’s website, Duarte has thus far received 62,760 votes (51.1 percent) throughout a district that extends to parts of Stanislaus, Merced, San Joaquin, Madera and Fresno counties. Gray, meanwhile, has collected 59,987 votes (48.9 percent).
Late Wednesday, Duarte led by about 3,200 votes, with Gray able to slice 400 votes off that lead by Thursday evening. That gave the Democrat’s campaign added optimism.
“Every vote matters,” said Gray. “We feel confident about where we stand and we’ll continue to watch the results roll in. I look forward to representing my neighbors and continuing my work for the Valley.”
While it’s unclear how many total votes remain to be processed in the five counties, Donna Linder, Stanislaus County’s Registrar of Voters, said that county turnout this election is trending toward about 67 percent. If that’s the case in the rest of the district, which boasts 340,000 registered voters, then there could be tens of thousands of votes outstanding.
“I am encouraged by the early vote returns,” said Duarte. “On Tuesday, Valley families sent a message that we are tired of high food and gas prices.”
Linder reported late Thursday night that 126,484 county ballots already had been counted, and that more than 64,000 vote-by-mail ballots in Stanislaus County alone still needed to be processed. However, not all those ballots will include Gray-Duarte votes since only about half of Stanislaus County sits within the 13th district’s boundaries.
Much of the remaining area of the county sits inside the 5th district, where Rep. Tom McClintock (R-El Dorado Hills) is way out in front of challenger Mike Barkley (D-Manteca). McClintock, seeking his ninth term in on the Hill, has more than 175,000 votes to Barkley’s 105,000.
The triangle-shaped northwest corner of Stanislaus County falls within the 9th district, where Rep. Josh Harder (D-Tracy) is locked in a close battle with Stockton Mayor Kevin Lincoln (R-Stockton). Harder leads with 50.7 percent of the vote.
In the state Assembly race for District 22, Republican incumbent Juan Alanis leads Democratic challenger Jessica Self with 57 percent of the vote.
“I am grateful to have the opportunity to continue the hard work my team, and I have been putting in for the past two years,” said Alanis in a social media post Wednesday morning.
“For the past two years, I have striven to work as hard as possible to benefit the people in my District. Sixteen bills I authored were signed into law in the past two years, and I strove to ensure the 22nd District’s voice was clearly heard in Sacramento. I am extremely proud to have delivered on my original campaign promise to deal with Proposition 47, retail theft, and crime during my first term. We gained several public safety victories, including the passage of Proposition 36, and passed laws to make our kids and communities safer,” he continued.
“During my time in office, I had never been about party politics. It has been about being a problem solver and getting things done. I promise to continue that same mentality in my second term. Thank you to the people of the 22nd Assembly District. It is my life’s honor to represent you in the legislature.”
In District 27, which includes positions of the Westside area, Democrat Esmerala Soria is leading in the vote count against her opponent, Republican Joanna Garcia Rose. Soria so far has 45,304 votes for 52.5 percent of the vote to Rose’s 40,927 votes for 47.5 percent.
Though the statewide election snapshot will come into focus soon, all of the state’s 58 counties must certify their elections on the same day, and that will not take place until early December.
— Journal editor Kristina Hacker contributed to this report.
