The 716,000 residents of Santa Clarita, Porter Ranch, and other towns in California’s 25th Congressional District will soon have a new representative.
Katie Hill was the Congressperson for District 25 until she left office this fall. Hill’s resignation made national news, but the future of her congressional seat has turned into a big story of its own.
Spectrum News 1’s Amrit Singh investigates why Hill’s seat has become such a coveted prize in the 2020 race.
WHO IS KATIE HILL?
Katie Hill is a Democrat who flipped SoCal’s 25th Congressional District in 2018.
More recently, the freshman Democrat was embroiled in a controversy that led to her resignation at the end of October.
The scandal centered around an alleged relationship between Hill and one of her staffers. Nude pictures of Hill and the staffer appeared online, which Hill believes were circulated by her abusive husband, a claim that he denies. While some saw Hill as the victim of a double standard, she ultimately decided to resign her position.
Earlier this month, Hill wrote an emotional New York Times opinion piece about her decision. She detailed how the online vitriol she received after the scandal led her to consider suicide, but that her friends, family, and supporters gave her strength to continue to “be part of the fight to create change.”
Hill’s resignation puts this key swing state into play.
WHY DOES DISTRICT 25 MATTER?
District 25 has been held by Republicans since the 1990s. Katie Hill changed all of that. She was part of the so-called “blue wave” in 2018.
In California, the blue wave was especially strong. In 2018, Democrats flipped six seats, including four in Orange County, which has been a Republican stronghold, a place where Ronald Reagan said “good Republicans go to die.”
House District 25 is another traditionally Republican seat.
Not only did Hill flip the 25th District, she also built on Hillary Clinton’s margin of victory from 2016.
Hill’s scandal, however, throws that momentum into question. Between fires and shootings, this area has a need for leadership that could transcend typical politics.
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Many think of California as a solidly Democratic state, but in reality there are more battleground House races here than one might think. The Democrats will fight tooth and nail to keep the gains they made in 2018, including retaining the 25th District.
That makes this congressional seat one of the nation’s biggest prizes at a time where D.C. is more divided than ever.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Governor Gavin Newsom gets to select the date for any special elections. In this case, Newsom chose a major upcoming date for California Democrats: Tuesday, March 3, 2020, or “Super Tuesday.”
Newsom knows Democrats will be out in full force to vote in the presidential primaries on March 3, and likely wants to take advantage of that turnout.
Democratic turnout will be especially important in this special election given California’s runoff system.
If a candidate gets more than 50 percent of the vote, they win the seat outright. If not, the top two candidates, regardless of party, will have a run-off election down the road. This could mean two Democrats facing off, or two Republicans.
If no one gets the majority outright this March, the run-off will be held on May 12, 2020.
WHO'S RUNNING?
The election for the 25th District is already getting crowded, and there is still time for more people to declare.
On the right, Steve Knight, the Republican who previously held the seat, is running. Former Trump Campaign Advisor George Papadopoulos has also thrown his hat in the ring.
On the left, the Democratic Party leaders have coalesced around Assemblywoman Christy Smith. She has been endorsed by Senators Kamala Harris and Dianne Feinstein, as well as Governor Newsom and the pro-choice political action committee EMILY’s List.
Founder of the liberal media network, The Young Turks, Cenk Uygur is running, as well. Uygur was endorsed by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, but the presidential candidate retracted his endorsement after facing criticism from his supporters. Rep. Ro Khanna (CA-17) followed suit soon after. Uygur then said he will no longer accept any endorsements in his race for the House.
Keep following Spectrum News 1 for more information about this race.