The Winner
If you live in California's 24th U.S. House District, you will continue to be represented in Congress by Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-CA), who has been declared the winner of the 2026 congressional race, according to the Associated Press. The Democrat took about 66.0% of the vote, or about 125,149 votes, to about 34.0% for Republican Bob Smith, or about 64,460 votes, according to the state's official results as of Nov. 10 from the California Secretary of State. That put Carbajal ahead by about 32 points, or about 60,689 votes.
The winner is based on the Associated Press call, and the vote figures are preliminary until the state certifies them.
The Race
Smith, the Republican opponent), reached the November ballot by finishing in the top two of the June 2 primary. Inside Elections rated the seat Solid Democrat before the election.
The district has about 757,700 residents, according to Geographies data for the district. Median household income is about $97,900 and median age is about 37. About 39.2% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the unemployment rate is about 5.9%, with about 13.9% of residents below the poverty line. The population is about 56.1% white, 39.6% Hispanic, 5.0% Asian and 1.5% Black.
The district covers all of Santa Barbara County and parts of San Luis Obispo and Ventura counties, according to the Office of Rep. Salud Carbajal.
What's Next
Carbajal is set to take office on Jan. 3, 2027. He said he would use committee hearings, subpoenas and the appropriations process to challenge what he called Trump's abuse of power, including the restart of the Sable pipeline, according to KEYT News Channel 3-12, which reported his remarks to local journalists on Nov. 4.
He also said he would seek to redirect ICE funding toward housing, gas, child care and health care.
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