Republicans are squabbling, and fuming, in the battle for Southern California's congressional district
It's a rally that — regardless of the outcome of the June 2 primary election — likely won't have Republicans in a celebratory mood.
The battle for the 40th Congressional District representing a swath of Orange County and parts of San Bernardino and Riverside counties is taking place in one of Southern California's remaining solidly red states. But that doesn't offer much comfort, experts say.
The redistricting following the passage of Proposition 50, which gave Sacramento Democrats the authority to redraw congressional districts in favor of Democratic candidates, pits two current members of Congress – Young Kim (R-Anaheim Hills) and Ken Calvert (R-Corona) – against each other in an attempt to retain their seats.
The two also faced challenges from a number of Democrats and an independent candidate who says he hopes to win votes from those fed up with partisan politics across the country.
But even if the Republican retains the seat, California's congressional delegation is still down one member.
“It was all part of the Prop. 50 effort,” said Jon Fleischman, a conservative strategist. “Not only did they reduce the number of seats the Republicans have, they have to push a few of those who were in one seat to eat popcorn and watch a food fight.”
And the gloves are already off.
Kim launched a $3.7-million ad blitz last month with a video boasting of his support for President Trump, saying he is a “Trump loyalist.”
Calvert's campaign responded to an attack ad that called Kim a RINO, or Republican in Name Only, a derogatory term often used by Trump and others in the GOP to describe conservatives deemed disloyal to the party and a “Trump Traitor.”
The television ad, which began airing last month, drew attention to Kim's co-sponsoring legislation with other Republicans to impeach Trump in 2022 after the Jan. 6, 2021, at the US Capitol. Democrats have slammed the move as a slap on the wrist.
“I believe that blaming the president after his actions helps him to be accountable and can gain broad support, allowing the House to stay united during some of the darkest days in our country,” Kim said at the time.
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report lists the 40th District, which stretches from Villa Park south to Mission Viejo in Orange County and to Corona, Murrieta and Menifee in the Inland Empire, as solidly Republican.
It is the only House seat that was contested under the old congressional district map that is now safe enough for the GOP. Trump would win the district by 12 points in 2024.
As two incumbents trade off, Democrats Esther Kim Varet, an art gallery owner; Lisa Ramirez, immigration attorney; Joe Kerr, retired fire captain; and Claude Keissieh, electrical engineer; they hope to garner enough support from progressives in the district to advance to the November election.
Nina Linh, who entered the race early as a Democratic Alliance but has been identified as an independent, hopes that voters who are fed up with both parties will enter.
“When I look at our political situation, I have never seen or had such different opinions in my life as an adult,” he said in a recent interview. “And people, myself included, are just tired of this back and forth for more than a decade that has fed into a culture of extreme division and extreme bias that has been prioritized over what everyday people are concerned about.”
Dan Schnur, who teaches political communication at USC, UC Berkeley and Pepperdine, called the race in the 40th District “a classic matchup between the two Republican parties — the pro-Trump party and the pre-Trump party.”
Kim, who in 2020 became one of the first Korean-American women elected to Congress, is voting to promote Trump's policies, but her history is more consistent with an earlier era of conservatism. Calvert, the longest-serving Republican in California's congressional delegation, has positioned himself aggressively with Trump, Schnur said.
The district largely represents the two types of Republicans who make up the bulk of the party — MAGA supporters and traditional Republicans who have either embraced Trump or quietly resented him.
“This district not only reflects the challenge facing the party across the country this year, it could be a precursor to what Republicans will face in the 2028 presidential election,” Schnur said.
