Golden State California Does a Triple “Blue” Flip– Congratulations Democratic Congressional Winner Adam Gray! December 3, 2024
California–the Golden State. Today, it should also be known as the Golden State that turns political gold Democratic “Blue.” It wasn’t always that way. From its admission to the Union in 1850 until more than a century later, CA was mainly Republican. Remember, even liberally-inclined three-term CA Governor Earl Warren was a Republican as well as his more conservative foe, Richard Nixon. In the mid-1960’s, when I moved to CA from the East, national pundits, broadcasters, and newspapers yammered without end about how the conservative tide that CA was showing would defeat Democrats there and would become the trendsetter for the entire nation. At that time, GOPer song-and-dance actor George Murphy defeated former JFK press secretary Pierre Salinger to win a Senate seat.Two years later, in 1966, Republican Ronald Reagan clobbered CA Democratic Governor Pat Brown who was running for a third term. Reagan, with much friendly media coverage, was touted from the get-go as presidential timber, way before his 1980 and 1984 White House wins.The GOP “shock troops,” especially the extreme right-wing John Birch Society, were considered to have a stranglehold on Republican politics, particularly in CA. Orange County, CA, (the OC), south of Los Angeles County, was considered “Ground Zero” of the GOP right-wing Revolution and the Birch Society’s epicenter. Republican 1964 presidential nominee Barry Goldwater was a “hero” to many in the Golden State. By winning the CA GOP primary in 1964, Goldwater clinched “Team Red’s” nomination for the presidency. Goldwater’s win started turning the GOP into the far right party it has now become.
CA politics, however, has changed “big time.” Since 1992, CA has handily voted for Democratic presidential nominees. In 2000, for the first time since FDR’s presidency, the OC went for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. It has voted for Democratic presidential nominees since that time and now has several Democratic Congress members. In 2024, despite the awful national returns giving Demagogue Donald a victory over Kamala Harris, CA voted for Harris, including the OC. Harris took CA by a 20.4% margin, 58.6%-38.2% (google.com). And the OC, still went for Harris, in this GOP-leaning year by a 2.6% spread, 49.7-47.1% (vote.sos.ca.gov). And even though the GOP recaptured the Senate, Californians voted for Democrat Adam Schiff over former GOP Dodgers/Padres baseball star Steve Garvey, by a wide 17.8% margin to take the seat of late Democrat Dianne Feinstein (nbcnews.com). In the CA House races, Democrats have now flipped 3 former GOP seats into the “Blue” camp. In the CA 27th CD (Congressional District), the Santa Clarita area in northern Los Angeles County, Dem. George Whitesides flipped a GOP seat by defeating Rep. Mike Garcia. In the CA 45th CD, located in the OC’s Huntington Beach region, Dem. Derek Tran beat GOPer Michelle Steel, and in the CA 13th CD, located in that state’s agricultural Central Valley, Democrat Adam Gray handed John Duarte a loss (sfgate.com/politics, Black, 11/27/24). Although the GOP has kept the House, these three Democratic victories will give Republicans the smallest majority after any election that they have had since 1930, according to analyst Harry Enten. It will be very hard for GOP Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to pass much legislation with this current 220-215 GOP majority. The smaller the GOP margin, the better, therefore, for “Team Blue” in 2025 legislative battles. And in the 2026 midterms Democrats will need just a net gain of three seats to take back the House (See kos, Klaridad). Let’s look at Adam Gray’s victory over John Duarte in the CA 13th CD. In the 2024 13th congressional race Gray defeated Duarte by 187 votes, one super-squeaker, but, ultimately, a major win for “Team Blue.” Gray’s victory was the final House race of Campaign 2024 that was called by the media (nbcnews.com, 12/04/24). Gray’s win netted one seat for Democrats in the 2024 House elections. Democrats flipped 9 GOP-held seats while the GOP flipped 8 Democratic-held ones. Because of these results, the GOP can lose only 2 votes on House legislation in the next Congress, if all of “Team Blue” votes in opposition. “Team Red” will, therefore, have little wiggle room for absences, internal fighting, or vacancies (nbcnews.com, 12/04/24).
As previously stated, Congress Member-elect Adam Gray (47) will be representing CA’s 13th Congressional District (CD). The current newly redistricted CA 13th includes all of Merced County, most of the population of Madera County, and parts of Stanislaus, Fresno, and San Joaquin Counties. The 13th, located in CA’s agricultural Central Valley in the interior of that state, includes the cities of Merced, Madera, Ceres, Patterson, Lathrop, and Chowchilla. Atwater, Coalinga, and Mendota are additionally in the 13th.The 13th also has the southern parts of Modesto and Turlock (Brassil, G., 1/18/22, mercedsunstar.com). This new CA13th CD is considered a Democratic swing district with a Cook PVI (Partisan Voting Index) of D+4 (Mizelle,S., cnn.com, 12/03/22). Despite this Democratic lean, in 2022, Republican John Duarte was elected in a squeaker. Duarte defeated Democrat Adam Gray by only 564 votes in 2022 (yourcentralvalley.com, Phillips, K., 10/16/24, wiki). After the 2022 midterm election, the CA 13th was one of 18 congressional districts won by the GOP that would have voted for Biden in 2020 The CA 13th is 65.9% Hispanic, 22.5% White, 6.2% Asian, and 2.8% Black (Mizelle, S., cnn.com, 12/03/22,wiki). In 2024, Gray successfully challenged Duarte in a rematch for the CA 13th.
Born and raised in Merced, CA Democrat Adam Gray (47) worked in his family’s dairy supply and feed store. He attended Merced College before he obtained his Bachelor’s degree in political science from UC Santa Barbara (mercedsunstar.com/news, Brassil, G., 1/18/22, campaigns.moveon.org). He worked in the district office of CA Assembly Member Dennis Cardoza, and was a staffer for lawmakers Herb Wesson, Fabian Nunez, and Jerome Horton (Rappley, N., ttownmedia.com, 9/02/11). During the 2007-2009 recession, Gray decided to run for the CA State Assembly to help solve economic problems. He won election to the CA State Assembly in Nov., 2012, receiving 58.2% of the vote. He coasted to re-election in the Assembly campaigns of 2014, 2016, 2018, and 2020 and served for ten years (CA Assembly Elections). In the Assembly, Gray pushed for bipartisan, common sense solutions. He founded the California Problem SolversCaucus and led the New Democratic Caucus. He addressed the key issues of homelessness, the pandemic, and drought. Gray led the fight against the State Water Grab. He organized rallies and passed legislation to block harmful initiatives. His efforts led to getting $3 billion for new water storage, $200 million for canal repairs, and $60 million for groundwater basin support, aid crucial to his Central Valley district (campaigns.moveon.org). Gray dealt with health care matters. Addressing the shortage of doctors in his district, he secured over $200 million for a joint medical school at UC Merced and UCSF-Fresno. He passed legislation to extend rural health clinic hours. Gray addressed crime matters as well. During Merced County’s peak murder rate, he secured $4.5 million for gang violence reduction (moveon.org). He strengthened infrastructure in his district and increased tax credits (moveon.org). In the field of education, he secured funds to build an Ag Tech building at Merced College and secured $2 million to provide job training in Modesto (adamgrayforcongress.com). Planned Parenthood Affiliates gave Gray the Reproductive Health Care Champion Award in the years 2018-2021 (legistorm.com).
Adam Gray’s GOP opponent was John Duarte in both the 2022 and the 2024 rematch. Duarte received a Bachelor’s degree in finance from San Diego State and an MBA from the University of the Pacific School of Business. (sacbee.com/news). Duarte began his career as a vice president of sales for Duarte Trees and Vines, which was founded by his parents in 1988. In 2007, Duarte became the company’s chief executive officer and president (legistorm.com). In 2017, Durate was ordered to pay a $2.8 million government fine after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers claimed that he had violated the Clean Water Act by plowing a field to plant wheat on his property in Tehama County (sacbee.com, 5/31/17). When the new 13th Congressional District was created after the 2020 redistricting cycle, he faced Adam Gray in the 2022 midterm election and, as was previously noted, beat him in an upset by just 564 votes (Mizelle, S. 12/03/22, cnn.com).
Despite claiming to be a “moderate,” Cong. Duarte is anything but one. After Bakersfield CA GOP Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted from that post, Duarte supported hard-liner Steve Scalise (R-LA) to take the gavel. When Scalise dropped out of that race, Duarte voted for even more radical right-wing provocateur Ohio’s Jim Jordan (wtaq.com, washingtonpost.com, Perry, K., Dormido, et al). Duarte has said that he “didn’t care about party politics. I’ll stand against ‘the woke.’ I’ll stand against the ultra-conservatives (wiki).’” IMHO, Duarte’s crack about standing against “the woke” is what most GOPers, including ultra-conservatives, the majority of that party, obsess about. Again, I repeat, Duarte is no moderate. Cong. Duarte additionally “claims” that he is pro-choice. He has voiced opposition to a federal abortion ban. However, Rep. Duarte has stated that abortion “should be left to the states (Brassil, G., 9/18/24, sacbee.com).” “Left to the states” is the phrase used by those who back the Supreme Ct’s overturning “Roe v. Wade.” In fact, 41 out of 50 states now have abortion bans in effect with only limited exceptions (guttmacher.org/state). Do not in any way be fooled by Duarte’s “moderate” talk on abortion or just about anything else.
Fortunately, Adam Gray defeated Cong. Duarte in his 2024 rematch. Yes, this election was, once again, far too close. However, to quote former basketball coach Phil Jackson, a “W” is a “W” or a “win is a win.” CA, unlike other states, did not fall for the party that worships “King Donald.” CA, under our effective Gov. Gavin Newsom and his fellow Democrats, like Gray, must lead the resistance against Demagogue Donald’s attempt to tear down the guardrails of our democracy.
