Two Republican-held House seats in the heavily agricultural Central Valley of California could be ripe for picking by Democrats if voters are riled by GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump’s criticism of Hispanics and immigrants, says the Los Angeles Times. Rep. David Valadao, a member of the Appropriations subcommittee that oversees USDA and FDA funding, represents a district that is 71 percent Latino, and Agriculture Committee member Jeff Denham has a district that is 26 percent Latino.
“If Trump is truly going to drag down incumbents regardless of their strengths, that will be a race to watch,” editor Nathan Gonzales of the Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report told the newspaper, referring to the contest between Valadao and Bakersfield lawyer Emilio Huerta. At present, both the Valadao and Denham races are rated as “likely Republican” by the political newsletter Sabato’s Crystal Ball.
First-term Republican David Young of Iowa is in the most competitive race of anyone on a House panel connected to agriculture, says the Crystal Ball. It lists Young’s race against Democrat Jim Mowrer as a toss-up in a district that includes the state capital, Des Moines, and 16 counties in central and southwestern Iowa.
Two Democrats on the House Agriculture Committee, Rick Nolan of Minnesota and Brad Ashford of Nebraska, are in “leaning Democratic” races, says the Crystal Ball, which is the rating next to toss-up in the newsletter’s four-step scale. Another Agriculture Committee member, Repubiican Mike Bost of Illinois and a member of the Appropriations subcommittee, Kevin Yoder of Kansas, are in “likely Republican” races. The great majority of House members are rated as safe for re-election. Democrats are expected to gain 10-15 seats, says the Crystal Ball. They need 30 to take control of the House.