Two of the Democratic Party’s top recruits for its biggest California targets – a pair of deeply-blue San Joaquin Valley seats held by Republicans – have spent the first six months of 2023 having raised seemingly nothing for potential rematches.
Former Asms. Adam Gray (D–Merced) and Rudy Salas (D–Bakersfield) have kept fundraising funds for rematches against Reps. John Duarte (R–Modesto) and David Valadao (R–Hanford), but the results thus far are far from encouraging.
Driving the news: Saturday, Congressional candidates were required to turn over fundraising reports for the second quarter of 2023.
- Gray reported having raised $8,248 in the three-month span for a rematch with Duarte and holding $35,831.65 on-hand.
- Another Democrat vying for the seat, perennial contender Phil Arballo (D–Fresno), raised $32,300.80 during the same time frame. He has $25,699.37 on-hand.
- Meanwhile, Duarte reported having raised $449,174.69 between April and June. His campaign war chest sits at $1,002,412.63.
Further south: Valadao’s rematch with Salas has, charitably, remained a sleepy affair with many watchers questioning if Salas would even mount a campaign in 2024 prior to the announcement of fresh endorsements.
- Salas reported raising a paltry $742.01 in the three months between April and June, leaving him with a mere $7,241.81 on-hand.
- Valadao, on the other hand, reported raising nearly 100 times Salas’s haul, with $740,527.85 arriving between April and June. He has $983,303.82 on-hand.
