3 More Tight House Races Called for Democrats, Narrowing GOP Path to Majority

Rep. Norma Torres (D-Calif.) in a December 2019 file photograph. (Jacquelyn Martin-Pool/Getty Images)

Three competitive races for the House were all called for Democrats late on Nov. 12, narrowing the Republican path to a majority.

Reps. Julia Brownley (D-Calif.) and Norma Torres (D-Calif.) were projected by The Associated Press to win their respective races—as was Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez in the race for Washington state’s 3rd Congressional District.

California state Rep. Kevin Mullin was also declared the winner of a race that pitted him against a fellow Democrat.

Those four calls take the Democrat-held seats up to 203 and lower the number of pickup opportunities left. A party needs 218 seats or more to gain a majority in the House; Republicans have 211.

The Republican Party expected to flip both the House and the Senate during the Nov. 8 midterm elections, but the Democrats will hold onto the upper chamber, according to the latest projections.

Brownley, 70, has been in office since 2013. She beat former federal prosecutor Matt Jacobs. Torres, 57, has been in office since 2015. She trumped businessman Mike Cargile. Pérez, an auto shop owner, prevailed in the race for a seat held by Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.), who was knocked off in the Republican primary by veteran Joe Kent.

Jacobs, Cargile, and Kent haven’t conceded as of yet.

Jacobs noted on Nov. 12 that more than 100,000 votes still need to be counted in California’s 26th Congressional District.

“The democratic process is sacred, and out of respect for that process, I encourage patience while the good people at Ventura County Clerk-Recorder, Registrar of Voters, and the L.A. County Registrar-Recorder ensure that every vote is counted,” he said.

Kent said, “What the media says is irrelevant; it’s another narrative designed to stop voters from ballot curing and to force me to concede—not gonna happen. We’re on the streets ballot curing. The fight goes on while the talking heads talk.”

Brownley was up by about 13,200 votes. Torres was leading by about 9,500 votes. Pérez was ahead by about 4,500 votes.

Mullin, 52, won one of the races in California that saw Democrats face off. He beat David Canepa, the former mayor of Daly City.

California operates what’s known as a top-two open primary system, under which candidates from any party can advance to the general election if they earn enough votes.

Most of the uncalled races are in California. One is in Alaska, two are in Arizona, two are in Colorado, one is in Maine, one is in New York, and two are in Oregon.