U.S. House, California - 20th District
Central Valley -- Kings County, parts of Fresno and Bakersfield
Race Information
- Incumbent: Rep. Jim Costa, D
- First Elected: 2004 (2nd term)
- Last Elected: 2006 (100%)
- Incumbent Status: Running for re-election
- Race Forecast: Safe Democrat
District Information
Politics in America District Profile
The Hispanic-majority 20th reaches from Fresno to Bakersfield, through rural portions of Fresno, Kings and Kern counties. Roughly 40 percent of Fresno’s residents live in the 20th, which takes in much of downtown and Hispanic areas in the southern section of the city.
Federal water projects in the Westlands have spawned vast farms with battalions of workers and a wide variety of crops, including alfalfa, cotton, fruits, sugar beets, wheat and nuts. Fresno’s agricultural contribution is more industrial, with a Sun-Maid fig plant, a Foster Farms hatchery, several dairy farms and a Kraft Foods plant that manufactures Capri Sun, Tang and Kool-Aid. The district also has attracted public and privately run prisons that assist the area’s economy.
The 20th bears much of the burden of the San Joaquin Valley’s urban and rural poor and is beset by unemployment and crime. Its residents have the nation’s sixth-lowest median income ($26,800), and the district has the state’s lowest rate of college education (6 percent), as well as the country’s third-highest number of residents (just under 50 percent) without a high school diploma. With the only blue-collar plurality in the state, many district workers are Hispanic and Hmong immigrants who work in the local farming communities that were hurt by agricultural losses after freezing temperatures in early 2007. Overall, the district has the nation's fourth-largest orchard acreage.
Democrats enjoy a distinct voter registration advantage in the 20th, although John Kerry only narrowly won the district’s 2004 presidential vote with 51 percent. The 20th is the nation’s third-youngest district, with its median age just a shade under 27.
Major Industry
Agriculture, dairy, prisons
Military Bases
Naval Air Station Lemoore, 7,197 military, 1,650 civilian (2007)
Cities
Fresno (pt.), 154,998; Bakersfield (pt.), 43,284; Hanford, 41,686; Delano, 38,824
Notable
The Fresno Sanitary Landfill is the country’s oldest sanitary landfill.
- Demographics (2000 census)
- Population: 639,088
- Under 18: 34.9%
- Over 65: 7.4%
- Married: 53.7%
- Non-Hispanic White: 21%
- Black: 7%
- Hispanic: 63%
- Asian: 6%
- Foreign Born: 28.9%
- Language other than English: 56.7%
- Median Household Income: 26,800
- Owner Occupied Housing: 50.0%
- Income above $200k: 0.9
- Workforce/Education (2000 census)
- White Collar: 37.8%
- Blue Collar: 43.0%
- Services: 19.2%
- Bachelor's Degree: 6%
- Graduate Education: 1.8%
- Civilian Veterans: 33,786
| Year | Election | Candidate | Votes | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | general | Jim Costa (D) | 72,977 | 73.3% |
| Jim Lopez (R) | 26,574 | 26.7% | ||
| 2006 | general | Jim Costa (D) | 61,120 | 100% |
| 2004 | general | Jim Costa (D) | 61,005 | 53.4% |
| Roy Ashburn (R) | 53,231 | 46.6% | ||
| 2002 | general | Cal Dooley (D) | 47,627 | 63.7% |
| Andre Minuth (R) | 25,628 | 34.3% | ||
| Varrin Swearingen (LIBERT) | 1,515 | 2% | ||
| Year | Democrat | Republican | Independent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | John Kerry: 51% | George W. Bush: 48% | |
| 2000 | Al Gore: 53% | George W. Bush: 42% |
Campaign Finance Details for the 2008 Race
| Filers | Through | Total Receipts | Total Disbursements | Total From PACs | Total From Individuals | Ending Cash | Debts Owed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LOPEZ, JAMES (R) | November 4, 2008 | $17,015.00 | $14,112.00 | $1,055.00 | $1,325.00 | $14,050.00 | |
| COSTA, JIM MR. (D) | November 24, 2008 | $1,018,688.00 | $885,265.00 | $15,000.00 | $471,886.00 | $338,431.00 | |
