Rep. Kevin Kiley is choosing to run against Republican challenger Tom McClintock
Northern California Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Rocklin), whose congressional district was on the ballot for redistricting measures approved by voters last year, announced Monday that he will not challenge Rep. Tom McClintock of Elk Grove. Instead, he plans to run in the Democratic-leaning district where he lives.
“It’s true that I was fully committed to running [McClintock’s district]after testing the waters and surveys showing a positive outlook in the ‘safe’ area. But what’s easy and what’s right are often not the same,” Kiley wrote on social media X. “And at the end of the day, as much as I love communities [that] The district I now represent – and as happy as I was with the newcomers – seeking office in a district that does not include my hometown did not sit well with me.”
Kiley, 41, currently represents the congressional district from Lake Tahoe to Sacramento. He did not respond to requests for comment.
But after California voters in November passed Proposition 50 — a ballot measure to redraw the state’s congressional districts in an effort to counter Trump’s moves to increase the number of Republicans in Congress — Kiley’s district was split into other districts.
As the application deadline approached, Kiley pondered her path forward in a decision that has been compared by political insiders to the reality television show “The Bachelor.” Who would get the last rose? McClintock’s new congressional district includes many gold fields, the Central Valley and Death Valley. Kiley’s chosen district includes the city of Sacramento and the cities of Roseville and Rocklin in Placer County.
Kiley has been facing a storm of support from the Republican establishment behind McClintock, 69, who has been in Congress since 2009 and served in the state Legislature for 26 years before that. President Trump, the California Republican Party and the Club for Growth political committee are among the people and groups that have supported McClintock.
Conservative strategist Jon Fleischman, a former executive director of the state GOP, said he was pleased with Kiley’s decision, which avoided a divisive battle within the party.
“If you open the dictionary and look up the word conservative, it’s a picture of Tom McClintock. He’s been the thought leader of conservatives, not only in California but in Congress for many, many years,” Fleischman said, adding that allowing McClintock came on purpose because Kiley was thinking of challenging him.
Kiley, who grew up near Sacramento, attended Harvard University and Yale Law School. A former member of Teach for America, he served on the State Council for six years before being elected to Congress in 2022 with the support of Trump. But he beat the president down, especially with tariffs. He also failed to run for Gov. Gavin Newsom is up for reelection in 2021, and has been a constant critic of the governor.
Kiley is now running for the Sacramento district represented by Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove). Democrats in the newly drawn district had a 9-point margin of voter registration in 2024. Bera is now working on a new version of the Kiley circuit.
In Kiley’s new race, her top rival is Dr. Richard Pan of Sacramento, a former state senator and staunch proponent of vaccination.
“Kevin Kiley can try to rebrand himself, but voters know his extreme record,” Pan said in a statement. “She has sided with Donald Trump 98% of the time and has been named a ‘MAGA champion.’ The people of this region deserve better than a political opportunity considered reasonable. This race is about who will fight for health care, public health and working families. I’ve done that my whole career. Kevin Kiley never.”
