Porter, Baugh Grapple for California’s 47th District in Orange County

(L) Congresswoman Katie Porter speaks in Irvine, Calif., on Oct. 14, 2022. (R) Congressional candidate Scott Baugh speaks in Huntington Beach, Calif., on Oct. 27, 2022. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Republican Scott Baugh is giving Rep. Katie Porter a run for her money in the election for California’s 47th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Porter, a Democrat, is barely leading the race with 50.6 percent of the vote over conservative challenger Scott Baugh with 49.4 percent, according to unofficial results from the California Secretary of State as of the evening of Nov. 14.

President Joe Biden and Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) recently stumped for Porter in Irvine, Calif., in an effort to boost Porter’s campaign.

Porter has raised approximately $23 million in campaign contributions over Baugh’s estimated $2.7 million as of Oct. 19, according to the Federal Election Commission.

In the June 7 state primary election, Porter received 52 percent of the vote followed by Baugh with 31 percent, and 17 percent going to other Republican candidates. Several media outlets have predicted Porter will win the possible swing district, but Cook Political Report’s House editor David Wasserman said in mid-October Porter could be in danger of losing her seat.

A single mother of three, Porter previously taught bankruptcy law at the University of California–Irvine. She was elected to Congress in 2018.

Although she acknowledges Californians are dealing with high prices, Porter blames multinational corporations for “price gouging families while making record profits,” according to her campaign website.

Porter, the deputy chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, states on her campaign website she believes in capitalism and a strong economy “built on competition.” ButBaugh contends that her actions suggest otherwise, claiming that she is “working to dismantle our capitalist economy, punish taxpayers, and increase the reach and power of the federal government.”

She claims her main priority in Congress is “lowering the costs people face every day—at the gas pump, in the grocery store, at the pharmacy, and for things like childcare and college.”

Porter has proposed legislation that would “crack down on fossil fuel companies that price gouge consumers,” and claims she is “working to address the root causes of inflation, such as supply chain disruptions and market monopolies.”

Baugh served as a state assemblyman from 1995 to 2000, including a two-year stint as Assembly Republican Leader. He served as Orange County GOP chairman from 2004 to 2015.

He has blamed the Biden administration’s policies for soaring inflation and gasoline prices that have more than doubled in some parts of California since the president took office in January 2021.

The federal government is printing too much money and isn’t focused on production, Baugh told The Epoch Times in a recent interview.

“When you pay people not to produce, they tend not to produce, and if you print too much money ... you’re going to get higher prices, and so this mentality that we can spend money on anything we want and there’s never a consequence has to stop,” he said.

He has called for an end to out-of-control government spending.

“We are $31 trillion in debt, and if that doesn’t get turned around quickly, our country’s going to go deeper and deeper into financial trouble,” he said

Baugh also supports tighter border security and curbing illegal immigration. He opposes “crazy sanctuary city laws that defy the U.S. Constitution and tie the hands of law enforcement.”

The California Secretary of State has until Dec. 16 to certify the election results.