1 year ago
28
FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - 28 days aft the 2024 Presidential General Election, the Associated Press called the last race inactive up successful the aerial for the U.S. House of Representatives.
In California's 13th Congressional District, Democrat Adam Gray defeated incumbent Republican John Duarte by little than 200 votes.
Gray, who came retired connected apical this clip successful a rematch of the 2022 race, is simply a erstwhile subordinate of the California State Assembly and expressed his excitement aft years of hard enactment yet paid off.
"It's a large honor. I'm grateful for each of the voters that supported maine and participated successful this predetermination and looking guardant to getting to enactment successful the nation's capital," said Gray.
As for his main priorities, Gray wants to absorption connected issues shared by constituents successful his district, which encompasses overmuch of California's Central Valley. He says those see the prioritization of harmless communities, bully schools, capable healthcare and healthcare staffing, and to support h2o resources. He says helium volition ever purpose to enactment crossed enactment lines to tackle those issues.
"People privation folks waking up each time and reasoning astir them. Not reasoning astir them, not reasoning astir the parties," said Gray. "To me, that's truly the mandate successful this election. Folks are looking for independent, accountable leadership, and I mean to spell to Washington and bash conscionable that."
As for Duarte, helium officially conceded the predetermination to Gray, issuing a connection thanking his constituents and team, arsenic helium discussed collaboration moving forward.
It reads successful part, "Serving our Valley successful Washington, DC, has been an honor. I americium incredibly arrogant of everything we accomplished together, particularly the millions of dollars worthy of assemblage projects that volition supply cleanable water, bully roads, and flood information for our families, nary substance what vicinity they telephone home."
Later connected successful the statement, Duarte would say, "While my clip successful Congress is ending, my emotion for our vale volition ne'er spell away. I volition enactment progressive successful the combat to marque our vale a amended spot for all."
Now successful the House, 215 seats beryllium to Democrats and 220 beryllium to Republicans. However, aft President-elect Donald Trump's picks for apical positions successful his medication included 3 House Republicans: Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, Rep. Mike Waltz of Florida, and erstwhile Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, The House will start with an adjacent tighter bulk for Republicans earlier those positions are yet filled.
Fresno State Political Science Prof. Thomas Holyoke says that could interaction the president-elect's goals to commencement his caller administration.
"The president-elect does person immoderate beauteous ambitious things helium wants to bash but with tiny majorities successful Congress, that is not a bully condition to beryllium trying to walk large argumentation due to the fact that helium would person to person each azygous Republican successful the House of Representatives," said Holyoke.
As for Gray, helium volition beryllium sworn successful connected Jan. 3.
