Harder advances in race to keep California House seat

Rep. Josh Harder (D-Calif.) cleared the threshold in Tuesday’s all-party primary as he seeks a second term in November.

The Associated Press called the race for Harder at 1:25 p.m. PST. He flipped the Central Valley district in 2018 after defeating a longtime GOP incumbent in the swing district.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former President Obama both carried the district in 2016 and 2012, respectively, but Democrats had struggled to unseat the district’s former GOP representative, ex-Rep. Jeff Denham, during those elections.

California’s jungle primary system means that the top two vote-getters in the primary advance to the general election, regardless of party.

Harder’s GOP opponent, Ted Howze, a veterinarian specializing in large animals and former member of the Turlock City Council, previously ran in the all-party primary for the seat in 2018. But Howze ranked in third place after Denham and Harder, making him ineligible to advance to the general election.  

The district’s population is about 45 percent Hispanic, according to Census data.

The Cook Political Report currently rates the race as “lean Democratic.”