<mediadc-video-embed data-state="{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1654526612482,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"0000017b-c093-df17-a7ff-cedfaaf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1654526612482,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"0000017b-c093-df17-a7ff-cedfaaf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"rawHtml":"
var _bp = _bp||[]; _bp.push({ "div": "Brid_54289051", "obj": {"id":"27789","width":"16","height":"9","video":"1025266"} }); ","_id":"00000181-3978-dedf-ad93-bd7b7f8b0000","_type":"2f5a8339-a89a-3738-9cd2-3ddf0c8da574"}”>Video EmbedLong Beach Mayor Robert Garcia is set to advance to the general election in California’s 42nd Congressional District.
With 44% of ballots reported, Garcia in Tuesday’s primary won 44.7% of the vote. John Briscoe, a trustee of the Ocean View School District, is in second place, with 28.7% of the vote. Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia is in third with 12.7%. Cristina Garcia, who is not related to Robert Garcia, was thought to be his strongest rival in the solidly blue Long Beach-based district.
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Each of the top candidates is a Democrat. California state law says candidates for offices designated as “voter-nominated,” including those in House races, are to be listed on one primary ballot regardless of party affiliation. The two top finishers in the primary cycle then advance to the general election, creating the possibility that voters in some districts may have a choice between two candidates of the same party in November.
Robert Garcia and Cristina Garcia were seen as the front-runners of the crowded primary prompted by a rare open seat left by the retirements of Reps. Alan Lowenthal and Lucille Roybal-Allard, two longtime Democratic lawmakers. The pair declined to compete in the new district, which may have pitted them against one another.
In 2014, Robert Garcia became Long Beach’s youngest mayor at 36, as well as its first openly gay mayor.
As a state lawmaker, Cristina Garcia gained a reputation as a fighter for progressive causes and an opponent of corruption, but she also faced allegations of workplace misconduct. Pro-Israel groups also strongly criticized her platform, either spending funds against her or in support of Robert Garcia after she evaded condemning the anti-Israel boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement.
In an endorsement of Robert Garcia, the editorial board for the Los Angeles Times wrote that although it considers both candidates as qualified for the job, Garcia “is the better choice.”
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“He blends hard-charging progressive values with an inspiring expression of optimism,” the endorsement read.
Garcia has out-fundraised all his rivals, according to Federal Election Commission data.
