Incumbent Rep. Linda Sánchez appears to have taken a comfortable lead in the 38th congressional district race Tuesday night.
The first round of votes released by the Orange County Registrar of Voters and L.A. County Clerk/Registrar-Recorder shortly after polls closed at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, March 5, put the 11-term Democrat from Whittier well ahead of the pack and Eric Ching, a Republican from Walnut, in second place.
Pastor John Sarega and entrepreneur Robert Zhang Ochoa are also vying for the seat.
Results will be updated regularly until the counting is complete.
The top two vote-getters in the primary, regardless of party preference, will advance to the general election in November.
CA-38, anchored in Los Angeles County but spans a portion of Orange County, includes La Habra, Diamond Bar, La Habra Heights, Hacienda Heights, La Mirada, Los Nietos, Norwalk, Montebello, Pico Rivera, Rowland Heights, Santa Fe Springs, Walnut, Whittier and parts of Downey and Industry.
According to state data, Democrats account for 48.1% of all the registered voters in the district, while 23% are Republicans and 22.7% are no party preference voters.
Sánchez, who last year became the first woman to helm BOLD PAC, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus’ campaign arm, is partaking in efforts to galvanize the Latino vote and elect Latino Democrats to Congress. The daughter of immigrants from Mexico, Sánchez is a strong advocate for a pathway to citizenship for “Dreamers,” young immigrants brought to the U.S. unlawfully through no fault of their own.
See the latest election results.
Ching, a Walnut councilmember, has focused his campaign on border security, being tough on crime, the right to bear arms and the economy. He was defeated by Sánchez by about 16 percentage points in 2022.
Ochoa, who bills himself as a common-sense Christian conservative, wants to lower crime, homelessness, inflation, gas prices, illegal drugs, illegal immigration and healthcare costs, among others.
Sarega ran for this seat in 2022 as well. He placed third in the primary and did not advance to the general.
