Assemblyman Kevin Kiley, R-Rocklin, speaks at a rally as part of his campaign for governor in the Gov. Gavin Newsom recall election in Redding on Tuesday evening, Aug. 3, 2021. Kevin Kiley
California – The battle for control of Congress in 2026 is already heating up, and California is once again at the center of the fight. A major Democratic group has put four Republican representatives in its crosshairs.
EMILYs List, an organization dedicated to electing Democratic women who support abortion rights, announced Wednesday that four California Republicans—Reps. Kevin Kiley (Rocklin), David Valadao (Hanford), Young Kim (Anaheim Hills), and Ken Calvert (Corona)—are on its list of 46 GOP members it hopes to unseat. The group argues that these representatives have closely aligned themselves with former President Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, and that flipping their districts is crucial to shifting the balance of power in the House.
“People all across the country are feeling the pain. The chaos and cruelty have no bounds—from slash-and-burn cuts to critical programs for veterans and farmers, to voting to strip millions of health care, to their continued assault on our fundamental rights and freedoms,” said EMILYs List President Jessica Mackler. “In 2026, we must take back the majority in the U.S. House to create a federal check on Donald Trump.”
California joins Pennsylvania and Florida as one of the key battlegrounds in the fight for House control. With a dozen congressional races rated as competitive by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, the Golden State stands out as the most contested landscape in the country. Even after losing a congressional seat following the last U.S. Census, California still has the largest delegation in the nation, making it a major player in the midterms.
One factor that keeps the state’s elections unpredictable is its independent redistricting commission, which took control of drawing district lines out of the hands of partisan legislators. This change, designed to curb gerrymandering, has resulted in highly competitive races that swing between parties depending on voter turnout and national trends.
Recent election cycles have reflected this volatility. Republicans suffered heavy losses in 2018, only to make a comeback in 2020 and 2022, helping former Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) briefly secure the House speakership. However, despite national GOP gains in 2022, California Republicans saw three incumbents lose their seats. State party leaders attributed these losses to tight district lines and heavy Democratic spending.
Looking ahead to 2026, Republicans will face additional challenges. Historically, the party controlling the White House tends to lose congressional seats in the midterms, meaning GOP candidates may struggle against shifting national dynamics. But Republican strategists remain confident in their path forward.
“Next November … in the House, we have seats to win back, incumbents to defend, and more pickup opportunities to play in,” former state GOP Chair Jessica Millan Patterson said at the party’s recent convention in Sacramento. “The road to the House majority will once again come right through California.”
As the election cycle ramps up, all eyes will be on California’s congressional races, where close margins and competitive districts could determine the future of Congress.
