BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Four candidates vying for California's 20th Congressional District seat are making their pitches to voters ahead of the 2026 primary, with the race shaping up around water, energy, military funding, housing, and the future of the Central Valley.
Republican incumbent Rep. Vince Fong, independents Ben Dewell and Jeremy Fox, and candidate Sandra Van Scotter each sat down to discuss the issues they say matter most to the district's residents.
Fong touts record, calls high-speed rail a "bait and switch."
Fong, who first won the seat in a special election before winning a full term, said his focus remains on delivering results for Central Valley communities he argues are consistently overshadowed by California's urban centers.
"The hard thing right now when we talk about what's going on in California is that the urban interests, the urban cities, always dominate those conversations. We now need to make sure, now more than ever, that our rural communities, our Central Valley communities get heard, we have a seat at the table, and that we get results," Fong said.
Fong pointed to water infrastructure funding, domestic energy production, and support for military installations — including China Lake, Edwards Air Force Base, and the Fresno Air Wing — as the pillars of his congressional work.
"When we talk about Iran, we talk about what's going on around the world, a lot of these missiles, a lot of these armaments, a lot of this new technology, they're being tested and evaluated and developed right here in our own backyard at China Lake and Edwards Air Force Base," Fong said.
On California's high-speed rail project, Fong was sharply critical following a recent 60 Minutes interview in which he addressed the issue. He called the project a broken promise to voters.
"When the voters were told about this high-speed rail project, they were told it was gonna be high-speed, which it is not. They were told that there was gonna be private investment, where there was none. They were told that it was gonna be $33 billion, and now it's $125 to $126 billion, and you have no track laid. They were told that it was gonna be done by 2020, and we're now in 2026 with no track and no train," Fong said.
Fong said the state should redirect those funds to other priorities, including highway improvements, forest management, hospitals, and schools.
"The state of California, in its insanity, is going to spend a billion dollars a year, every single year, to try to salvage this nightmare, and I think that's irresponsible," Fong said.
On the prospect of a Republican governor in California, Fong said it would open the door to a level of state-federal partnership the Central Valley has long lacked.
"It would be great to have a governor that says, you know what, let's double the production, let's triple the production so that we keep our refineries open, that we keep our pipelines open, that we actually have more production not only in the Central Valley but across California to bring down gas prices, to bring down grocery costs, to bring down electricity rates," Fong said.
Dewell pitches independent voice as path to balance
Dewell, an 8-year director with the Stallion Springs Community Service District and a scientist by training, is running as an independent. He argues the district's voter makeup — which he says is 46% Republican, 26% independent, and 24% Democrat — makes it uniquely suited for an independent candidate.
"The only way someone will win the primary here is if they are part of a larger coalition, and that's what I represent here, a larger coalition of people, independents for an independent district," Dewell said.
Dewell said restoring balance to Congress is his central mission, and that working across the aisle is something he has already demonstrated at the local level.
"We recently passed, with an 85% margin, Measure A, which supports our police department and makes it viable for the next few years. When do we ever get that kind of acclaim in politics right now? Well, we do it in Stallion Springs because we understand that we all have to work together," Dewell said.
On energy, Dewell said Kern County's fossil fuel resources should be kept within California rather than exported, comparing the approach to how water is managed across the state.
"Right now, we have Nevada telling us that they are going to sue us because we don't have a refined product for them. Well, that's absurd. We have our own energy-producing resources here, and yet we don't have any control over them. They're being controlled from outside," Dewell said.
On housing, Dewell said institutional investors have been sitting on distressed properties since 2008 and driving up costs by keeping inventory off the market.
"We need to release that inventory that's available but not available from the people who own it right now and make it available to individuals who will live in their homes. We have to make private homes available to people who are willing to live in the homes, not simply kept off the market for investment or to keep people in the sense of being like indentured servants as renters," Dewell said.
On immigration, Dewell called for comprehensive reform that has gone unaddressed in Congress for two decades.
"From border security to allowing people competent immigration status to supporting people who really want to come here and add to our society and make it a better society — this country has been built on immigrants. There's just no question about that," Dewell said.
Van Scotter says the district has gone without representation for too long
Van Scotter, a direct support professional from Ridgecrest who works with adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, said she decided to run after watching her clients panic over potential Medicaid cuts tied to the One Big Beautiful Bill.
"The people I do represent in the work that I do were very concerned about the passage of that bill and how it was going to affect them, and I was like, where are our representatives to tell us what's going on and why it happened and how can we help ourselves?" Van Scotter said.
Van Scotter said Ridgecrest and the broader district have suffered from a lack of visible representation for years, pointing to China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station as an example of a critical national security asset that has gone without adequate advocacy in Washington.
"There was an article about a month or so ago in the local Daily Independent, the Ridgecrest paper, where the command from the base was explaining that they had to scramble to go meet Secretary Hegseth and his staff to introduce themselves and let them know what China Lake does because they didn't know," Van Scotter said.
If elected, Van Scotter said her priority would be water. She said she plans to reintroduce or co-sponsor a multifaceted water bill package alongside Reps. Jim Acosta and Adam Gray, if they are also re-elected, will address the Central Valley's water crisis.
"We have so many tiny little rural towns with their little tiny water districts that don't have the funding to fix their problems, and we have a lot of people that are drinking poisoned water," Van Scotter said.
On the war with Iran, Van Scotter said Congress was bypassed in the decision to engage, and that more answers are needed.
"There was diplomacy happening days before the attacks began, and there seems to be no concrete, consistent rationale for why we're participating in attacking this country. I don't believe we should be there, but we definitely need more answers, and diplomacy needs to be restored," Van Scotter said.
On birthright citizenship, Van Scotter said she disagrees with the president's position.
"I believe if a person is born here, they are a citizen regardless of their parents' citizenship," Van Scotter said.
Van Scotter summed up her candidacy simply.
"I show up. I'm an in-person person. I came here to see you today because I care about where I live. I care about the people that live here," Van Scotter said.
Fox runs as the "normal guy" with a constitutional focus
Fox, a 48-year-old independent from Visalia who has multiple sclerosis, said he entered the race after becoming frustrated over water being released from Lake Success and Lake Kaweah.
Fox said his campaign pitch is straightforward: he is not a polished politician, and he sees that as an asset.
"I'm trying to get out that Washington is broken, and we do have an easy way to get back to fixing things, and it's just to return to the Constitution, which really is out of whack, and we're not following it right now," Fox said.
Fox said running as an independent has given him the freedom to speak without restraint.
"I think it's given me flexibility to really just say whatever I want. I don't have to worry about holding my tongue," Fox said.
On the war with Iran, Fox said the U.S. should withdraw entirely.
"I think it's completely unconstitutional, and we should bring all our people home right now," Fox said.
On Medicare and Medicaid, Fox said the corruption problem lies with corporations, not with patients. Fox said he is on Medicare himself because of his multiple sclerosis.
"I think it'd be awesome if everybody had it. I don't think it's a big corruption problem with the people trying to get care. I think it's more of a problem with the corporation," Fox said.
Fox said if he does not advance past the primary, he may throw his support behind another candidate in the race — though he stopped short of naming anyone.
"There is somebody else in this race that I could get behind. I would rather win myself, but there is somebody else in this race that I might get behind if I don't make it," Fox said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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