You don’t have to be a GOP or Democratic strategist to see it’s starting to get real in Congressional District 13, with the Nov. 5 election less than a month away.
Within the last week, top leaders from both parties have made in-person appearances in the Valley to support their respective candidates.
For example, California Senate candidate Rep. Adam Schiff stopped at UC Merced on Wednesday to meet with Democrat Adam Gray, who is in a tight race against incumbent District 13 Rep. John Duarte.
Meanwhile, earlier in the week House Speaker Mike Johnson appeared in Modesto with Rep. Vince Fong to galvanize Republican support behind Duarte in the 13th District.
Johnson posted about the Modesto meeting on his X account.
Similarly, Schiff posted about his visit to Merced, speaking to Gray’s university class.
Obviously, the Valley visits by high-level Republicans and Democrats aren’t to take advantage of our extended summer weather.
Republicans want to maintain power in the House of Representatives, while Democrats want to take back the majority.
Republicans hold 220 of House seats to the Democrat’s 212, with three vacancies. Winning the 13th Congressional District will be key to gaining or retaining power.
The race between Duarte and Gray is a rematch. In 2022, Duarte beat Gray by a mere 564 votes, or less than half a percentage point, out of over 133,000 ballots cast.
The 13th Congressional District stretches across five counties, including San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Madera and Fresno.
Gray and Duarte are scheduled to face off later this month at the “Debate At The State.”
The event is scheduled to take place Oct. 25 at the State Theatre, 1307 J St. in Modesto. Admission is free; register at the State Theatre website. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the debate starts at 7:30 p.m.
The debate is being sponsored by the Central Valley Journalism Collaborative, The Maddy Institute and UC Merced Cape Center. The debate will be broadcast live on CapRadio (91.3 FM in Modesto/Stanislaus County) and KVPR (89.3 FM Merced and Fresno).
KVPR/Merced FOCUS reporter Rachel Livinal contributed to this report.
