CA-22 Hanford, Delano
California
Not calledR -10.0closes 11:00 pm ET
Toss-up
Who's running
David ValadaoRIncumbent
David Valadao is a dairy farmer who has been in Congress since 2013, with a two-year break after losing in 2018. He was one of the Republicans who voted to impeach President Trump in 2021. He has beaten Democrats six times in seven tries.
What they say they'll do
- Dairy farmer, first elected 2012
- Voted to impeach Trump in 2021
- Voted for the 2025 bill that cut Medicaid
Randy VillegasD
Randy Villegas is a 31-year-old college teacher and a Visalia school board member. He ran as a progressive backed by Bernie Sanders and takes no corporate PAC money. He beat a more moderate Democrat in the June primary.
What they say they'll do
- Community college instructor and school board trustee
- Backed by Bernie Sanders and the Working Families Party
- Took no corporate PAC money
The tea ☕
- California voters passed Prop 50 in 2025 and redrew this district. The new map added Democratic parts of Fresno County and dropped Republican-leaning towns like Hanford, Porterville, and Tulare, so the seat got much harder for Valadao.
- In the Democratic primary, national Democrats backed moderate Jasmeet Bains, while House Republican allies spent money to help Villegas because they thought he would be easier to beat. Villegas won anyway, and the Democratic party then got behind him.
Sources
- https://gvwire.com/2026/10/09/valadao-and-villegas-couldnt-be-further-apart-the-stakes-for-ca-22-are-huge/
- https://gvwire.com/2026/06/11/this-bernie-sanders-endorsed-democrat-will-try-to-oust-californias-toughest-gop-incumbent/
- https://www.axios.com/2026/05/26/democrats-house-races-2026-galindo-villegas-bains
- https://uspollingdata.com/candidates/randy-villegas/
- https://ballotpedia.org/California's_22nd_Congressional_District_election,_2026
- https://www.270towin.com/2026-house-election/table/cook-political-report-2026-house-ratings/