Early endorsement for Randy Villegas in CA CD-22 The Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club has voted an early endorsement of Randy Villegas for the House seat in CD 22. CD 22 is a district in the Central Valley that includes Kings County and parts of Kern and Tulare Counties. Over two-thirds of the residents rely on Medicaid, the highest rate in the country. This is why the NPC is supporting Randy now, rather than waiting until after the June primary, even though there will be other Democrats running in the primary:
Villegas is clearly the progressive candidate in this race: “I’m running on an economic populist message.”
In the last election, the Democrats ran a centrist candidate, Rudy Salas, who lost to Republican Valadao, the current Representative for CD 22. Running another centrist Democrat in 2026 is a recipe for failure. We need a Democrat with a progressive message for voters.
Four Democrats have declared their intention to run for this seat, against the Republican incumbent David Valadao. Two are serious contenders, Randy Villegas and Jasmeet Bains. Randy Villegas is the son of farm workers from Mexico who got a PhD, is teaching at a community college, and understands the level of work it will take to beat the incumbent, so he’s doing it! He has 300-400 volunteers working for him, takes tough stands and is able to communicate well with his constituents. Jasmeet Bains currently represents District 35 in the California State Assembly. She is a centrist Democrat who has received money in the past from oil companies and gave money to a Republican running for office in 2020. Rudy Salas lost to Valadao in 2024. Although he has declared, he does not appearing to be running a serious campaign. Eric Garcia has also declared but has not raised any funds to date.
The Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club has endorsed CA Prop 50 - the Election Rigging Response Act. To help spread the word about this important campaign, the Wellstone Club is following CADem's lead, using their literature, PDI, voter targeting, and turf cutting. We are also working with the Bay Area Coalition (BAC), which has volunteers who send follow-up emails and texts to the people who sign up to canvass. Volunteers sign up through Mobilize (https://www.mobilize.us/swingleft/event/833199/, and multiple organizations are promoting the canvasses to their networks.
Wellstone Club endorsements for the June 2026 California elections will take place in March 2026. Members in good standing as of January 31, 2026 will be eligible to vote on endorsements at the March 2026 endorsement meeting. Become a Wellstone member today, or inquire as to your current membership status and renewal date.
