Democrats captured the last congressional seat of the 2024 election cycle on Tuesday as Merced Democrat Adam Gray ousted Republican incumbent Rep. John Duarte in a photo finish race in California’s Central Valley.
California’s 13th congressional district was the last remaining race for the United States House of Representatives and had the narrowest margin in the country. Gray was ahead by 187 votes when Duarte conceded Tuesday night.
After trailing during the first three weeks of vote counting, Gray took the lead on November 26 as mail-in ballots tilted in his favor.
Gray, 47, said in a statement Tuesday that he was honored to be elected and thanked the volunteers, voters, donors, campaign staff and family members who helped him win .
“This district is ready for independent, responsible leadership that always puts Valley residents ahead of partisan politics,” Gray said.
Gray said he would work to build bipartisan relationships and provide “clean water, better educational opportunities, stronger infrastructure and more good-paying jobs.”
Duarte conceded Tuesday evening, a campaign spokesperson said.
“That’s how it happens,” Duarte told the Turlock Journal on Tuesday. “I am a citizen legislator and I did not plan to stay in Congress forever. But whenever I think I can make a difference, I will consider public service in different forms, including running for Congress again.”
Republicans will maintain a slim majority in the House of Representatives next year. With Gray’s victory, Republicans will hold 220 seats — barely above the 218-seat threshold needed to control the chamber — and Democrats 215.
The GOP will have an even narrower majority for part of January. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) resigned from the House last month. Rep. Michael Waltz of Florida has been named national security adviser to President-elect Donald Trump and is expected to resign, as is Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York if she is confirmed as United Nations ambassador.
The 13th Congressional District was one of six California seats considered key in the fight for control of Congress, and one of three in the state that Democrats slipped from Republican control.
In Orange County, Democrat Derek Tran ousted Republican Rep. Michelle Steel, and in northern Los Angeles County, Democrat George Whitesides defeated Republican Rep. Mike Garcia. Democrats also held on to a seat vacated by Rep. Katie Porter (D-Irvine), with state Sen. Dave Min defeating Republican Scott Baugh.
Republicans fared better in the Central Valley’s other swing district, where Rep. David Valadao beat Democrat Rudy Salas by nearly 7 points. Salas filed to run again for Congress in 2026 on Tuesday.
The GOP also held a seat in Riverside County, where voters re-elected longtime Republican Ken Calvert over Democrat Will Rollins, a former federal prosecutor.
The rural 13th Congressional District stretches from Coalinga to Modesto, encompassing Merced County and parts of Fresno, Madera, San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties.
The district appears blue on paper, with 42% of registered voters affiliated with the Democratic Party, compared to 29% registered as Republican and 22% registered with no party preference.
But the Central Valley is more purple than the dark blue districts surrounding the Bay Area and Los Angeles, and the region’s conservative Democrats often cross party lines to elect Republicans.
The 2024 campaign was a rematch of 2022, when Duarte defeated Gray by 564 votes, the second-closest margin in the country.
This year, Duarte campaigned on lowering gas prices and the cost of living. Duarte, whose family owns a large farm in the San Joaquin Valley, introduced himself to voters as a moderate Republican, saying he had opposed his party on abortion and immigration, saying relating rather to intermediate political proposals.
Gray introduced himself as a “radical centrist,” citing his decade in the state Assembly as proof he could work across party lines. In August, he told the Times that he chose to run again against Duarte because he believed the outgoing president and Republicans had done little in Congress to help ordinary Americans.
