John Scott Duarte (born September 9, 1966) is an American politician, businessman,

nurseryman A nursery is a place where plants are propagated and grown to a desired size. Mostly the plants concerned are for gardening, forestry or conservation biology, rather than agriculture. They include retail nurseries, which sell to the general p ...

, and pistachio farmer. A member of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

, he has served as the

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

for

California's 13th congressional district California's 13th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California. Barbara Lee, a Democrat, has represented this district since January 2013. The 13th district no longer consists of the northwestern portio ...

since 2023.

was considered a competitive race that would help determine control of the House in the 2022 midterm elections. His election was the second-closest in the nation, behind

Lauren Boebert Lauren Opal Boebert ( ; ; born December 19, 1986) is an American politician, businesswoman, and gun rights activist. A member of the Republican Party, she serves as the U.S. representative for . From 2013 to 2022, she owned Shooters Grill, a ...

's election in

Colorado's 3rd congressional district Colorado's 3rd congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Colorado. It takes in most of the rural Western Slope in the state's western third portion, with a tendril in the south taking in some of the southern porti ...

Early life and education

Duarte was born on September 9, 1966, in

Modesto, California Modesto () is the county seat and largest city of Stanislaus County, California, United States. With a population of 218,464 at the 2020 census, it is the 19th largest city in the state of California and forms part of the Sacramento-Stockton- ...

, to Jim and Anita Duarte, and is the grandson of

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

immigrants. He graduated from the University of the Pacific's Eberhardt School of Business with an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

and a

bachelor’s degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six y ...

in finance from

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

in 1989.

Early career

In 1989, Duarte began his career as a vice president of sales for Duarte Trees & Vines, which was founded by his parents in 1988. In 2007, he became the company's chief executive officer and president. In 2017, Duarte was ordered to pay a $2.8 million government fine after the

United States Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

claimed that he had violated the

Clean Water Act The Clean Water Act (CWA) is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution. Its objective is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters; recognizing the responsibiliti ...

by plowing a field to plant wheat on his property in

Tehama County Tehama County ( ; Wintun for "high water") is a county located in the northern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 65,829. The county seat and largest city is Red Bluff. Tehama County comprises th ...

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2022

On March 9, 2022, Duarte launched a campaign to represent

after the

2020 United States redistricting cycle The 2020 United States redistricting cycle is in progress following the completion of the 2020 United States census. In all fifty states, various bodies are re-drawing state legislative districts. States that are apportioned more than one se ...

created a new district based in the Central Valley. He and California state Assemblyman

Adam Gray Adam C. Gray is an American politician who served in the California State Assembly. He is a Democratic Party (United States), Democrat who represented the California's 21st State Assembly district, 21st Assembly district, encompassing all of Mer ...

advanced to the general election. He defeated Gray in the

2022 United States House of Representatives elections The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections were held on November 8, 2022, as part of the 2022 United States elections during incumbent president Joe Biden's term. The elections were held to elect representatives from all 435 U ...

with 50.2% of the vote. He was declared the winner on December 3, 2022, almost a month after the election.

Tenure

Duarte was sworn into office on January 3, 2023. He supported

Kevin McCarthy Kevin Owen McCarthy (born January 26, 1965) is an American politician, serving as Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives, House Minority Leader in the United States House of Representatives since 2019. A member of the Rep ...

for

Speaker of the United States House of Representatives The speaker of the United States House of Representatives, commonly known as the speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives. The office was established in 1789 by Article I, Section 2 of the U. ...

Committee assignments

For the

118th Congress The 118th United States Congress is the next meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It is scheduled to meet in Washington ...

: * Committee on Agriculture ** Subcommittee on Conservation, Research, and Biotechnology ** Subcommittee on Forestry ** Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities, Risk Management, and Credit *

Committee on Natural Resources Committee on Natural Resources may refer to: * Philippine House Committee on Natural Resources, a committee of the House of Representatives of the Philippines * United States House Committee on Natural Resources, a committee of the U.S. House of R ...

** Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources ** Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries *

Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure The U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. History The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure was formerly known as the Committee on Public Works a ...

** Subcommittee on Highways and Transit ** Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials ** Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment

Electoral history

Personal life

Duarte lives with his wife, Alexandra, on a pistachio and almond farm outside of

Modesto Modesto () is the county seat and largest city of Stanislaus County, California, United States. With a population of 218,464 at the 2020 census, it is the 19th largest city in the state of California and forms part of the Sacramento-Stockton- ...

in rural

Stanislaus County , image_skyline = , image_caption = Images, from top down, left to right: Modesto Arch, Knights Ferry's General Store, a view of the Tuolumne River from Waterford , image_flag = , i ...

. They have four children.

References

External links

*
John Duarte for Congress
campaign website * * , - 1966 births 21st-century American politicians American people of Portuguese descent Farmers from California Living people Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California {{California-politician-stub