California's 50th congressional district is a

congressional district Congressional districts, also known as electoral districts and legislative districts, electorates, or wards in other nations, are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional bod ...

in the U.S. state of

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, and encompasses the central and northeastern parts of

San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fi ...

and a small part of Riverside County. Darrell Issa is currently the U.S. representative for California's 50th congressional district. From 2003 through 2013, California's 52nd consisted of many of San Diego's northern and eastern suburbs, including

Santee Santee may refer to: People * Santee Dakota, a subgroup of the Dakota people, of the U.S. Great Plains * Santee (South Carolina), a Native American people of South Carolina Places * Lake Santee, Indiana, a reservoir and census-designated place * ...

Lakeside Lakeside or Lake Side may refer to: Places Australia * Lakeside College, Pakenham, Victoria * Lakeside Joondalup Shopping City, Joondalup, Western Australia * Lakeside, near Reservoir, Victoria * Lakeside International Raceway, Pine Rivers, Quee ...

, Poway, Ramona, La Mesa,

Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...

, Winter Gardens, Borrego Springs, and Spring Valley. Due to

redistricting Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral dist ...

after the

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

, much of this area is now part of the 50th district. Despite being indicted by a federal grand jury for misusing campaign funds,

Duncan D. Hunter Duncan Duane Hunter (born December 7, 1976) is an American former politician and United States Marine who served as a U.S. representative for from 2013 to 2020. He is a member of the Republican Party, who was first elected to the House in 2008 ...

narrowly won re-election in 2018. On December 3, 2019, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy misuse of campaign funds, and it was expected he would resign before being sentenced on March 17, 2020.Rep. Duncan Hunter pleads guilty to misusing campaign funds, is expected to resign from Congress
''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'', Sarah D. Wire and Seema Mehta December 3, 2019. Retrieved December 3, 2019. On January 7, 2020, he submitted letters of resignation to both

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerf ...

Nancy Pelosi Nancy Patricia Pelosi (; ; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician who has served as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives since 2019 and previously from 2007 to 2011. She has represented in the United States House of ...

and

Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, the g ...

Gavin Newsom Gavin Christopher Newsom (born October 10, 1967) is an American politician and businessman who has been the 40th governor of California since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 49th lieutenant governor of California fr ...

indicating that his resignation would take effect at close of business on January 13.Rep. Hunter Announces Resignation Date, Newsom Will Not Call Special Election

KNSD KNSD (channel 39) is a television station in San Diego, California, United States, airing programming from the NBC network. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations alongside Poway-licensed Telemundo outlet KUAN-L ...

, Julie Watson and NBC 7 Staff January 7, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2020. A day later, Newsom's office stated that there would be no special election to fill the seat, and so it remained vacant until being filled in January 2021, as a result of the regularly scheduled 2020 election. Ammar Campa-Najjar, the Democratic nominee for the seat in 2018, and Republican Darrell Issa, who formerly represented

California's 49th congressional district California's 49th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California. The district is represented by Mike Levin. The district currently covers the northern coastal areas of San Diego County, including Oceansid ...

, competed in this election. Issa won the seat by 8 points.

Geography

The 50th district is based in

. It includes suburban and outlying areas of the county, including

Fallbrook Fallbrook is a CDP in northern San Diego County, California. Fallbrook had a population of 30,534 at the 2010 census, up from 29,100 at the 2000 census. Fallbrook's downtown is not on a major highway route. It is west of Interstate 15 or n ...

San Marcos San Marcos is the Spanish name of Saint Mark. It may also refer to: Towns and cities Argentina * San Marcos, Salta Colombia * San Marcos, Antioquia * San Marcos, Sucre Costa Rica * San Marcos, Costa Rica (aka San Marcos de Tarrazú) ...

, Valley Center, Ramona, Escondido,

, parts of El Cajon and mountain and desert areas stretching east to the

Imperial County Imperial Count (german: Reichsgraf) was a title in the Holy Roman Empire. In the medieval era, it was used exclusively to designate the holder of an imperial county, that is, a fief held directly ( immediately) from the emperor, rather than from ...

line. It extends slightly into southwestern Riverside County and covers much of the city of Temecula.

Competitiveness

In statewide races

Composition

As of the 2020 redistricting, California's 50th congressional district is located in Southern California. It encompasses most of the South Bay region of

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

County. San Diego County is split between this district, the 48th district, the 49th district, the 51st district, and 52nd district. The 50th and 48th are partitioned by Gopher Canyon Rd, Escondido Freeway, Mountain Meadow Rd, Hidden Meadows, Reidy Cyn, N Broadway, Cougar Pass Rd, Adagio Way, Calle Ricardo, Tatas Place, Rue Montreux, Jesmond Dene Rd, Ivy Dell Ln, N Centre City Parkway, Highway 15, Richland Rd, Vista Canal, Woodland Parkway, W El Norte Parkway, Bennett Ave, Elser Ln, Nordahl Rd, Calavo Dr, Deodar Rd, Highway 78, Barham Dr, 2315-2339 Meyers Ave, Hill Valley Dr, County Club Dr, Auto Park Way, Highway 56, N Centre City Parkway, W Valley Parkway, N Juniper St, Highway 78, N Hickory St, E Mission Ave, Martin Dr, E Lincoln Ave, N Ash St, E Grand Ave, Bear Valley Parkway, Old Guerjito Rd, San Pasqual Battlefield State Historic Park, San Pasqual Trails Openspace, San Dieguito River Park, Bandy Canyon Rd, Santa Maria Creek, Highland Valley Rd, West Ridge Trail, Palmer Dr/Summerfield Ln, Pomerado Rd, and Carmel Mountain Ranch Openspace. The 50th and 49th are partitioned by Gopher Canyon Rd, Camino Cantera, Corre Camino, Tierra del Cielo, Elevado Rd, Vista Grande Dr, Warmlands Ave, Queens Way, Canciones del Cielo, Camino Loma Verde, Alessandro Trail, Friendly Dr, Edgehill Rd, Catalina Heights Way, Deeb Ct, Foothill Dr, Clarence Dr, Highway S14, Smilax Rd, Poinsetta Ave, W San Marcos Blvd, Diamond Trail Preserve, S Rancho Santa Rd, San Elijo Rd, Rancho Summitt Dr, Escondido Creek, El Camino del Norte, San Elijo Lagoon, Highland Dr, Avacado Pl, Jimmy Durante Blvd, San Dieguito Dr, 8th St, Nob Ave, Highway S21, and the San Diego Northern Railway. The 50th and 51st are partitioned by Camino del Norte, Highway 15, Carmel Mountain Rd, Ted Williams Parkway, Del Mar Mesa Openspace, Los Penasquitos Creek, Inland Freeway, Governor Dr, Pavlov Ave, Stetson Ave, Millikin Ave, Regents Rd, Ducommun Ave, Bunch Ave, Branting St, Streseman St, Pennant Way, Highway 52, San Diego Freeway, Sea World Dr, Friars Rd, Kumeyaay Highway, and Highway 805. The 50th and 52nd are partitioned by Iowa St, University Ave, Inland Freeway, Escondido Freeway, Martin Luther King Jr Freeway, John J Montgomery Freeway, and San Diego Bay. The 50th district takes in the cities of

Coronado Coronado may refer to: People * Coronado (surname) * Francisco Vázquez de Coronado (1510–1554), Spanish explorer often referred to simply as "Coronado" * Coronado Chávez (1807–1881), President of Honduras from 1845 to 1847 Places United ...

, and southern Escondido, as well as the

neighborhoods of San Pasqual, Rancho Bernardo, La Jolla, Point Loma, University City, Torrey Pines, Mission Beach, North Park, Hillcrest,

South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...

Golden Hill Golden Hill or Golden Hills may refer to: Places China *Golden Hill, Hong Kong, a mountain South Africa * Golden Hill, Western Cape, a suburb in Somerset West United Kingdom *Golden Hill, Bristol, a suburb *Golden Hill Fort, Isle of Wight United ...

, Pacific Beach, Carmel Valley, Pacific Highlands Ranch, and

Black Mountain Ranch Black Mountain Ranch is a suburban community in the northern part of the city of San Diego, California. Black Mountain Ranch encompasses and is located north of Rancho Peñasquitos and Torrey Highlands, south of the Santa Fe Valley, east of Fai ...

Cities & CDP with 10,000 or more people

- 1,386,932 * Escondido - 151,038 * Rancho Bernardo - 133,481 *

- 94,833 *

- 20,192

List of members representing the district

Elections results

1992

1994

1996

1998

2000

2002

2004

2006 (Special)

Representative Cunningham resigned on November 28, 2005, as a result of a bribery scandal. An open special election was held on April 11, 2006. The top vote getter was Democrat

Francine Busby Francine Pocino Busby (born March 3, 1951) is a former member of the school board in Cardiff, California and was the chair of the San Diego County Democratic Party. She has four times been the Democratic candidate for Congress in California's 50th ...

, who won 44% of the vote. The second-place finisher was Republican

Brian Bilbray Brian Phillip Bilbray (born January 28, 1951) is an American Republican politician who represented parts of San Diego County in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2001 and again from 2006 to 2013. Bilbray was Chairman of the House ...

, who won 15% of the vote. Paul King was the top Libertarian party vote getter, with 0.6% of the vote. Since no candidate received a simple majority, the top vote-getters in each party competed in a

runoff Runoff, run-off or RUNOFF may refer to: * RUNOFF, the first computer text-formatting program * Runoff or run-off, another name for bleed, printing that lies beyond the edges to which a printed sheet is trimmed * Runoff or run-off, a stock market ...

or special

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

on June 6, 2006 (the same day as the statewide California primary). Bilbray was sworn in on June 13, based on unofficial counts, two weeks before the election was certified. As a consequence of this action, a court challenge to the election results filed by voters was denied on jurisdictional grounds. This decision was appealed unsuccessfully.

2006

2008

2010

2012

2014

2016

2018

2020

Historical district boundaries

44th district

In the 1980s, was one of four encompassing

. The district had been held for eight years by

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Jim Bates and was considered the most Democratic district in the San Diego area. However, Bates became bogged down in a scandal involving charges of

sexual harassment Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fro ...

Randy "Duke" Cunningham Randall Harold "Duke" Cunningham (born December 8, 1941) is a former American politician, decorated Vietnam War veteran, fighter ace, and ex-felon. Cunningham served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's ...

won the Republican nomination and hammered Bates about the scandal. Cunningham won by a point. The San Diego area was represented entirely by Republicans for only the second time since the city was split into three districts after the 1960 United States census. After his victory, Cunningham changed his official residence from his Del Mar home to a condominium in the Mission Valley neighborhood in San Diego, so he could reside in the district that he represented in Congress.

41st district

In the 1980s, was another of four encompassing

. The northern

district had been held for 12 years by Republican Bill Lowery and was considered the most Republican district in the San Diego area. Most of the district became the after state redistricting following the 1990 United States census. In 1992, Cunningham campaigned against Lowery in Lowery's district in the Republican primary. The new 51st district was more dominated by ethnic whites and was more conservative than Cunningham's more urban, former 41st district located farther south. Lowery was tainted by the House check kiting scandal and lost the primary to Cunningham. The latter, a Navy career officer, had run on a campaign theme of "A Congressman We Can Be Proud Of." After winning, Cunningham changed his official residence back to his Del Mar home in the old 41st/new 51st district.

2000s

From 2003 to 2013, the 50th district consisted of the northern coastal region of

and included the suburbs of

Carlsbad Carlsbad may refer to: *Carlsbad, California, United States *Carlsbad, New Mexico, United States *Carlsbad, Texas, United States *Karlovy Vary Karlovy Vary (; german: Karlsbad, formerly also spelled ''Carlsbad'' in English) is a spa town, spa ...

, Encinitas, Solana Beach, and Escondido.

In popular culture

On November 29, 2005, Stephen Colbert of

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...

's ''

The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show focuse ...

'' declared on his show that the 50th congressional district was "dead" to him after its insufficient support for his "friend" Duke Cunningham. Colbert placed the district on the show's ever-changing "Dead to Me" board, saying that he now considered the number of congressional districts in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

to be 434. (The number became 433 when he retired the for its insufficient support for

Tom DeLay Thomas Dale DeLay (; born April 8, 1947) is an American author and retired politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1985 until 2006. He was Republic ...

.) On March 1, 2006, he "downgraded" the 50th district's status from "dead to me" to "never existed to me."

List of The Colbert Report episodes ''The Colbert Report'' is a Late night television in the United States, late-night series that aired nightly on Comedy Central. Hosted by Stephen Colbert, it was produced by Colbert, Jon Stewart, and Ben Karlin and revolved around Colbert playing ...

, episodes 122 and 226.

References

External links

* sdvote.com
San Diego Voter Registrar
* sos.ca.gov
Secretary of State Padilla Announces Results of Randomized Alphabet Drawing for June 7 Presidential Primary Election Ballots
* GovTrack.us
California's 50th congressional district
{{DEFAULTSORT:California's 50th Congressional District 50 Government of San Diego County, California Political districts in Riverside County, California East County (San Diego County) North County (San Diego County) Escondido, California Ramona, San Diego County, California San Marcos, California Santee, California Temecula, California Valley Center, California Constituencies established in 1993 1993 establishments in California