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Federal race · California

United States Representative · District 51

California. Election Day was Nov. 3, 2026. Two candidates are on the official list.

Who is running

Certified by California Secretary of State, as of Oct 15, 2026. Official list

Names and parties are copied exactly from the official list. Blue marks Democrats, red marks Republicans, and gray marks every other party or none; each is also labeled in words.

Official vote count

Unofficial results until certified. These are counts as published by California Secretary of State. Counts change as ballots are counted. Power & Politics does not call races or project winners.

U.S. House of Representatives District 51 - Districtwide Results, as listed by the official source
Candidate or choicePartyVotesShare of votes counted
Sara JacobsDem109,16663.1%
Ricardo CabreraRep63,71236.9%

663 of 663 precincts reporting, as stated by California Secretary of State. As reported by California Secretary of State (the source says it was updated November 5, 2026, 2:39 p.m.). Rows are in the order the source lists them, which is not a ranking. Official source · All California results

Worth knowing

Each fact is worked out from the official records linked beside it. None is a prediction or a rating.

Past results

Share of the vote for this district, 1992 to 2024Percent of all votes counted in each regular general election. A gap means the party had no candidate or no count was published.
  • Democratic candidate
  • Republican candidate
Share of the vote for this district, 1992 to 2024Line chart with 2 series from 1992 to 2024. The same figures are in the data table below. A gap in a line means no figure.0%20%40%60%80%200020102020Democratic candidate, 1992: 33.66%Democratic candidate, 1994: 27.72%Democratic candidate, 1996: 28.93%Democratic candidate, 1998: 34.66%Democratic candidate, 2000: 30.4%Democratic candidate, 2002: 57.93%Democratic candidate, 2004: 61.61%Democratic candidate, 2006: 67.43%Democratic candidate, 2008: 72.75%Democratic candidate, 2010: 60.05%Democratic candidate, 2012: 71.48%Democratic candidate, 2014: 68.79%Democratic candidate, 2016: 72.75%Democratic candidate, 2018: 71.2%Democratic candidate, 2020: 68.3%Democratic candidate, 2022: 61.86%Democratic candidate, 2024: 60.7%Republican candidate, 1992: 56.08%Republican candidate, 1994: 66.93%Republican candidate, 1996: 65.07%Republican candidate, 1998: 61.02%Republican candidate, 2000: 64.34%Republican candidate, 2002: 39.33%Republican candidate, 2004: 35.12%Republican candidate, 2006: 30.15%Republican candidate, 2008: 24.21%Republican candidate, 2010: 39.95%Republican candidate, 2012: 28.52%Republican candidate, 2014: 31.21%Republican candidate, 2016: 27.25%Republican candidate, 2018: 28.8%Republican candidate, 2020: 31.7%Republican candidate, 2022: 38.14%Republican candidate, 2024: 39.3%60.7%39.3%Share of the vote for this district, 1992 to 2024Line chart with 2 series from 1992 to 2024. The same figures are in the data table below. A gap in a line means no figure.0%20%40%60%80%199520002005201020152020Democratic candidate, 1992: 33.66%Democratic candidate, 1994: 27.72%Democratic candidate, 1996: 28.93%Democratic candidate, 1998: 34.66%Democratic candidate, 2000: 30.4%Democratic candidate, 2002: 57.93%Democratic candidate, 2004: 61.61%Democratic candidate, 2006: 67.43%Democratic candidate, 2008: 72.75%Democratic candidate, 2010: 60.05%Democratic candidate, 2012: 71.48%Democratic candidate, 2014: 68.79%Democratic candidate, 2016: 72.75%Democratic candidate, 2018: 71.2%Democratic candidate, 2020: 68.3%Democratic candidate, 2022: 61.86%Democratic candidate, 2024: 60.7%Republican candidate, 1992: 56.08%Republican candidate, 1994: 66.93%Republican candidate, 1996: 65.07%Republican candidate, 1998: 61.02%Republican candidate, 2000: 64.34%Republican candidate, 2002: 39.33%Republican candidate, 2004: 35.12%Republican candidate, 2006: 30.15%Republican candidate, 2008: 24.21%Republican candidate, 2010: 39.95%Republican candidate, 2012: 28.52%Republican candidate, 2014: 31.21%Republican candidate, 2016: 27.25%Republican candidate, 2018: 28.8%Republican candidate, 2020: 31.7%Republican candidate, 2022: 38.14%Republican candidate, 2024: 39.3%Democratic candidate 60.7%Republican candidate 39.3%

District lines are redrawn after each census and sometimes in between, so the same district number did not always cover the same ground.

Data table: Share of the vote for this district, 1992 to 2024
Share of the vote for this district, 1992 to 2024
YearDemocratic candidateRepublican candidate
199233.66%56.08%
199427.72%66.93%
199628.93%65.07%
199834.66%61.02%
200030.4%64.34%
200257.93%39.33%
200461.61%35.12%
200667.43%30.15%
200872.75%24.21%
201060.05%39.95%
201271.48%28.52%
201468.79%31.21%
201672.75%27.25%
201871.2%28.8%
202068.3%31.7%
202261.86%38.14%
202460.7%39.3%

Source: Federal Election Commission, Federal Elections and Clerk of the House of Representatives, Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election and MIT Election Data and Science Lab, U.S. House of Representatives 1976-2024 (compiled from the Clerk of the House). As of Nov 5, 2026.

Winners and margins, 1992 to 2024
Winners and margins
YearMost votesMargin over the runner-up
2024Sara Jacobs (Democratic)70,086 votes (21.4 points)
2022Sara Jacobs (Democratic)55,300 votes (23.7 points)
2020Juan C. Vargas (Democratic)88,755 votes (36.6 points)
2018Juan Vargas (Democratic)65,226 votes (42.4 points)
2016Juan Vargas (Democratic)90,800 votes (45.5 points)
2014Juan Vargas (Democratic)30,796 votes (37.6 points)
2012Juan Vargas (Democratic)68,470 votes (43.0 points)
2010Bob Filner (Democratic)28,935 votes (20.1 points)
2008Bob Filner (Democratic)98,936 votes (48.5 points)
2006Bob Filner (Democratic)43,183 votes (37.3 points)
2004Bob Filner (Democratic)47,915 votes (26.5 points)
2002Bob Filner (Democratic)19,111 votes (18.6 points)
2000Randy ‘‘duke’’ Cunningham (Republican)90,883 votes (33.9 points)
1998Randy ‘‘duke’’ Cunningham (Republican)54,523 votes (26.4 points)
1996Randy "Duke" Cunningham (Republican)82,782 votes (36.1 points)
1994Randy \"Duke\" Cunningham (Republican)81,173 votes (39.2 points)
1992Randy \"Duke\" Cunningham (Republican)56,742 votes (22.4 points)

See every result for this district

Map

California's U.S. House districts, with District 51 outlined
  • This race
  • Another district
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California's U.S. House districts, with District 51 outlinedMap of the California congressional districts of the 119th Congress, coloured by group with a group list in the table. The same information is in the data table below.CA-1: Another districtCA-2: Another districtCA-3: Another districtCA-4: Another districtCA-5: Another districtCA-6: Another districtCA-7: Another districtCA-8: Another districtCA-9: Another districtCA-10: Another districtCA-11: Another districtCA-12: Another districtCA-13: Another districtCA-14: Another districtCA-15: Another districtCA-16: Another districtCA-17: Another districtCA-18: Another districtCA-19: Another districtCA-20: Another districtCA-21: Another districtCA-22: Another districtCA-23: Another districtCA-24: Another districtCA-25: Another districtCA-26: Another districtCA-27: Another districtCA-28: Another districtCA-29: Another districtCA-30: Another districtCA-31: Another districtCA-32: Another districtCA-33: Another districtCA-34: Another districtCA-35: Another districtCA-36: Another districtCA-37: Another districtCA-38: Another districtCA-39: Another districtCA-40: Another districtCA-41: Another districtCA-42: Another districtCA-43: Another districtCA-44: Another districtCA-45: Another districtCA-46: Another districtCA-47: Another districtCA-48: Another districtCA-49: Another districtCA-50: Another districtCA-52: Another districtCA-51: This race

Outlines are the Census Bureau's simplified cartographic boundaries, drawn for display, not for legal boundaries. Group names are in the table and in each district's tooltip, not only shown by colour.

Data table: California's U.S. House districts, with District 51 outlined
California's U.S. House districts, with District 51 outlined
DistrictContest
CA-1Another district
CA-2Another district
CA-3Another district
CA-4Another district
CA-5Another district
CA-6Another district
CA-7Another district
CA-8Another district
CA-9Another district
CA-10Another district
CA-11Another district
CA-12Another district
CA-13Another district
CA-14Another district
CA-15Another district
CA-16Another district
CA-17Another district
CA-18Another district
CA-19Another district
CA-20Another district
CA-21Another district
CA-22Another district
CA-23Another district
CA-24Another district
CA-25Another district
CA-26Another district
CA-27Another district
CA-28Another district
CA-29Another district
CA-30Another district
CA-31Another district
CA-32Another district
CA-33Another district
CA-34Another district
CA-35Another district
CA-36Another district
CA-37Another district
CA-38Another district
CA-39Another district
CA-40Another district
CA-41Another district
CA-42Another district
CA-43Another district
CA-44Another district
CA-45Another district
CA-46Another district
CA-47Another district
CA-48Another district
CA-49Another district
CA-50Another district
CA-51This race
CA-52Another district

Source: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary file for the 119th Congress. As of the 119th Congress (2025 to 2027) boundary file.

The outlined district is the one in force for the 119th Congress. A state that redrew its map for 2026 may vote on different lines; the official list above names the contest.

Campaign money

Totals each campaign reported to the Federal Election Commission for 2025 to 2026
CandidateRaisedSpentCash on handThrough
Sara Jacobs $1.9M$1.6M$317KOct 14, 2026

Each candidate's own reports to the Federal Election Commission, through the date shown. Candidates not listed have no FEC totals tied to them on our records. Each name links to the candidate's FEC page.

Headlines that name a candidate in this race

No headline from the outlets we follow has named a candidate in this race together with California in the last 30 days.

Headlines are shown as each outlet published them, with a link to the outlet. A headline appears here only when it names a candidate's full name and the state, or comes from a newsroom in the state. They are the outlets' reporting, not Power & Politics findings.

Other races on the same ballot

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