It appears that Visalia Unified School District Board Member Randy Villegas could be running for Congress in the 22nd District.
Villegas joined Rep. Ro Khanna (D–Fremont) in Bakersfield on Sunday for the Bay Area rep’s parachuting town hall series, taking aim at Rep. David Valadao (R–Hanford) and hinting at a potential run.
What they’re saying: Speaking ahead of Khanna, Villegas targeted Valadao in his short speech, accusing the Congressman of trying to take healthcare away from the people of the Central Valley.
- “I’m standing before you today because I’m ready to fight for working families, I’m ready to fight for the Central Valley,” Villegas said.
- He added, “For far too long, the Central Valley’s been left behind by politicians who are more in love with power than they are with people, by politicians like Valadao, Fong and McCarthy who care more about serving corporations than our communities.”
- Villegas introduced Khanna, who said he would like to see Villegas as a colleague in the House of Representatives.
- “They told me Randy was loved around here, I didn’t know he was that good,” Khanna said. “I mean, you’re the type of guy who would make a pretty good Congressman if you ask me.”
Zoom out: While voters wait to see if Villegas – who resides far outside of Valadao’s district – will officially launch a campaign, one familiar Democrat could make another attempt at ousting Valadao from the district.
- Former Asm. Rudy Salas (D–Bakersfield) has filed campaign finance paperwork with the Federal Election Commission for the 22nd District. Salas and Valadao are the only two people who have filed so far.
- Salas lost to Valadao by three points in 2022 and performed worse last year, losing to Valadao by 6.8 points.
