Democratic Rep. Linda Sanchez has won over first-time candidate and fellow Democrat Michael Tolar in the heavily blue 38th congressional district, per the Associated Press.
“Despite the obstacles in our way this election cycle, you showed up for Democracy, masked and all,” Sanchez told supporters on social media. “It is my deepest honor to continue working for you in the U.S. Congress.”
Sanchez and Tolar were the only candidates in the primary for CA-38, which includes portions of Los Angeles and Orange counties. So the two Democrats, both from Whittier, advanced to the Nov. 3 general election, with Sanchez scoring 77.7% of the vote to Tolar’s 22.3%.
They agreed on many key issues, supporting policies such as universal healthcare and California’s sanctuary laws to protect undocumented immigrants. But on some issues, Tolar skewed further left. For example, he supports calls to defund the police in the wake of racial justice protests.
Given the gaps in experience, name recognition and campaign cash — Sanchez sits on $926,147 while Tolar hasn’t reported any fundraising – Sanchez was expected to easily win reelection.
But Tolar said he remained optimistic heading into Election Day that his personal story, grassroots campaign and pledge to keep “fighting for everyday people” would resonate with voters.
Tolar, 27, was born on a military base in Louisiana and said his family struggled to make ends meet growing up. He went to work straight out of high school, but started studying political science at Rio Hondo Community College at the age of 24 and graduated in May.
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He billed himself as a progressive candidate who supports policies such as a ban on assault weapons, expanded social security benefits for people with disabilities, the Green New Deal, higher wages for workers, free tuition to public universities and trade schools, and sensible rent control.
Sanchez supports many of the same policies. And she ranks slightly more left than the average House Democrat, according to GovTrack.us, a nonpartisan site that tracks congress.
Sanchez, 51, was born in Orange to parents who immigrated from Mexico. She worked as a bilingual aide as she put herself through law school at UCLA. Before she was elected to office in 2002 to represent what was then the 39th District, Sanchez’s legal practice was focused on working with organized labor.
Given that background, much of her effort in congress has focused on issues such as worker safety and bringing back overseas jobs, along with tax reform, retirement security and supporting public education. Recently, Sanchez cosponsored legislation focused on tax deductions for musicians, extending emergency healthcare coverage and offering grants for nonprofits during the pandemic.
The CA-38 win will give Sanchez a tenth term in Congress.