After a tight race in California’s 25th District (CA-25) congressional election, which includes, Republican Representative Mike Garcia was re-elected into his position. Garcia and his Democratic opponent Christy Smith, took turns in the lead during the race, with very little margins separating both candidates. Following a few days of trailing behind Garcia, Smith conceded the election. 

“Garcia maintained a slim lead over Smith by 333 votes[…],” said The Los Angeles Times.

During the March primary, Representative Garcia originally lost to Smith, but was successful in the May special election that sought to fill former Representative Katie Hill’s seat. That win signified the first time in over twenty years that the Republican Party was able to flip a congressional seat in California. 

CA-25, which is also known as a “purple district,” has trended Democratic over the past few years. A “purple district” is a district where support for the Democratic and Republican parties is relatively equal. However, the district’s more conservative history was able to garner enough votes for Garcia to win. 

One of the first things Garcia plans on doing is pushing to make sure those who were impacted most by coronavirus receive federal relief.