The hotly contested race for an open House seat in coastal Orange County between Republican Scott Baugh and Democratic state Sen. Dave Minn is expected to be decided by Tuesday night as vote counting continues. The competition continues to be too close.
California’s 47th Congressional District is currently held by Democratic Rep. Katie Porter, who is scheduled to leave Congress in January. Her decision not to seek re-election and instead run for the U.S. Senate, where she was unsuccessful in the March primary, began a heated race to replace her. Porter narrowly defeated Beau’s challenge in 2022.
Democrats have long held a slight voter registration advantage over Republicans in this wealthy coastal district, which includes Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach, Irvine, Newport Beach and Seal Beach.
But an increase in Republican registration reversed that advantage this cycle. At the end of October, there were 383 more Republican registered voters than Democratic registered voters, according to the Orange County Registrar of Voters.
Still, the Cook Political Report, which tracks House races, said the 47th District Democratic Party. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added the race to its “red to blue” list, seen as a key victory for Democrats hoping to regain the House majority. The race was such a priority for the Democratic Party that former President Clinton visited Orange County last month to campaign for Min Johnson.
Min, a former University of California, Irvine law professor, has been a state senator since 2020. During her campaign for Congress, Min emphasized her desire to codify Roe v. Wade and other laws at the federal level, claiming they would protect women’s rights. You can make your own medical decisions. During his campaign, he also advocated for gun violence prevention, pointing to a bill he authored that would ban gun shows on federal land.
Minh has come under fire in connection with a drunk-driving arrest last year, and last month a campaign sign was defaced with anti-Asian slurs.
Mr. Baugh, a Huntington Beach attorney, led the Orange County Republican Party as chairman from 2004 to 2015 and served in the California State Assembly from 1995 to 2000. Mr. Beau has focused much of his campaign on border security, inflation and public safety. In the TV ad, Baugh talked about his brother’s death from fentanyl in 2020 and stressed that his top priority in Congress is to address the fentanyl epidemic.
Baugh has faced attacks from Democrats over allegations of fraud in the 1995 House election and because of his opposition to abortion.
