Race · November 3, 2026

U.S. House · California's 48th District

2 candidates on the ballot — an open seat, with no incumbent running.1

How this race is decided: Under California's top-two system, only the two candidates who received the most votes in the June 2, 2026, primary, regardless of party preference, appear on this general-election ballot.1,2

§1Candidates

Why this matters: Every candidate the state lists for this race on the November ballot, in the state's own order.

Marni von Wilpert
Democratic · Open seat
Jim Desmond
Republican · Open seat

§2Side by side

Why this matters: The same facts for every candidate, in the same order. Where we found nothing for a candidate, the cell says so — that means we didn't find it in public sources, not that it doesn't exist.

Scroll sideways on small screens. Select a name for the full page.
Marni von WilpertJim Desmond
Party on the ballotDemocratic1,3Republican1
StatusOpen seatOpen seat
Raised$4,966,576 through October 14, 20264$3,177,972 through October 14, 20265
Cash on hand$659,1364$717,5185
Outside spending$2,351,869 for · $933,754 against6$244,373 for · $5,644,253 against7
Zoning and new housingHer campaign website says she would cut red tape and make it easier to build more affordable housing so people can live closer to where they work.8His campaign website's housing plan calls for firm time limits on permitting so housing gets built faster and at lower cost.9

Issues only one candidate has addressed

By candidate, in ballot order. We found nothing public from the other candidates in this race on these issues.

Marni von Wilpert — 27 issues
  • Birth control and IVF
    Her campaign website says she will protect the freedom to build a family through assisted reproductive care.8
  • Government funding and abortion
    Her campaign website says she would lead efforts to reverse President Trump's cuts to Planned Parenthood.8
  • Who sets abortion law
    A national law making abortion legal in every state, at least until viability, as under Roe v. Wade
    Her campaign website says she would be a deciding vote to write Roe v. Wade into federal law.8
  • Discrimination protections for sexual orientation and gender identity
    Pass broad protections such as the Equality Act
    Her campaign website says she would work to pass the Equality Act so the protections Californians have are guaranteed nationwide.8
  • Voting Rights Act protections
    Restore and widen protections by law, such as federal approval of voting changes in places with a history of discrimination (for example, the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act)
    Her campaign website says Congress must pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the For the People Act to protect elections and expand access to the ballot.8
  • Cryptocurrency rules
    Write separate federal rules for crypto, as the House-passed bill would, with most tokens overseen as commodities rather than securities
    Her campaign website says she supports legislation such as the CLARITY Act and the GENIUS Act that gives regulatory clarity for emerging technologies.8,10
  • Tariffs
    Lower or remove most tariffs
    Her campaign website lists repealing President Trump's tariffs among her priorities and says she will fight what it calls his tariff war, which it says made essential goods more expensive.8,11
  • Union organizing rules
    Make it easier to form a union (for example, the PRO Act)
    Her campaign website says she helped write the PRO Act as a congressional committee counsel and would pass it in Congress to strengthen workers' rights to organize and bargain.8,10
  • Books in school libraries
    Her campaign website says she will fight book bans that target LGBTQ+ voices.8
  • Campaign finance rules
    Limit spending by outside groups, including by amending the Constitution to overturn Citizens United
    Her campaign website says Citizens United should be overturned to get dark money out of elections.8
  • Stock trading by members of Congress
    Ban members themselves from trading individual stocks
    Her campaign website says she would ban members of Congress from trading stocks.8
  • Oil and gas drilling on federal land and offshore
    Her campaign website says she would protect California's beaches and waters from President Trump's plan to drill for oil off the coast.8
  • Same-sex marriage
    Keep same-sex marriage legal in every state
    Her campaign website's LGBTQ+ rights section says she will protect the freedom to build a family through marriage, adoption or assisted reproductive care.8
  • Foreign aid
    Restore or increase foreign aid, including programs cut in 2025
    Her campaign website says she would defend and expand programs such as PEPFAR, keep investing in global health, and restore funding for USAID.8
  • Iran's nuclear program and sanctions
    Her campaign website says she would work to end President Trump's war with Iran, which it calls costly.8
  • US role in NATO
    Her campaign website says she supports America's role in NATO and would work to rebuild America's alliances.8
  • Who decides on military action
    Her campaign website says she opposes President Trump's unauthorized wars.8
  • AR-15-style rifles
    Ban the sale of these rifles
    Her campaign website says she will keep fighting for gun laws including a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.8
  • Background checks for gun sales
    Require checks for all gun sales, including private sales (with exceptions such as gifts between family members)
    Her campaign website says she will keep fighting for gun laws including universal background checks.8
  • Red flag laws
    Her campaign website says she will keep fighting for gun laws including stronger red flag laws.8
  • ACA premium tax credits
    Her campaign website says she would restore the ACA tax credits.8
  • Health insurance system
    Add a government plan that anyone can choose to buy
    Her campaign website says she would protect and expand the Affordable Care Act and add a public option that gives families more affordable choices.8
  • Medical transition for minors
    Her campaign website says she will push back against bans on gender-affirming care.8
  • Immigration enforcement inside the country
    Her campaign website says she has opposed ICE's tactics in her community, that on the city council she pushed for San Diego to join Minneapolis's lawsuit against ICE, and that in Congress she would work to get masked ICE agents off the streets.8
  • Legal status for immigrants here without permission, including Dreamers
    A path to citizenship for most who meet requirements such as background checks
    Her campaign website says she supports reform that keeps the border secure and provides legal pathways to citizenship for hardworking long-term residents and Dreamers.8
  • Medicare drug price negotiation
    Expand it to more drugs and to people with private insurance
    Her campaign website says she would expand Medicare's power to negotiate prescription drug prices and cap what families pay out of pocket.8
  • Social Security benefit levels
    Her campaign website says she would protect Social Security, oppose any cuts or privatization, and make sure the program is strengthened for current and future retirees.8
Jim Desmond — 9 issues
  • Electric vehicles
    Tax credits or other incentives, but no emissions rules that favor them
    His campaign website says buyers should have incentives for electric, hybrid, hydrogen and gas-powered vehicles rather than mandates, and criticizes policies that force electric vehicles on people.12
  • Nuclear power
    Speed up licensing further and expand federal support to build many new reactors
    His campaign website says he would preserve and modernize existing nuclear plants, develop small modular reactors and streamline regulations to encourage building new nuclear plants.12
  • Child care costs
    His campaign website's child care plan calls for expanding and simplifying the child care tax credit so help arrives monthly, tax-free child care savings accounts, and tax credits for employers that provide or arrange child care.13
  • Help for first-time homebuyers
    His campaign website's housing plan calls for expanding down-payment assistance and creating a fund to help local first-time buyers compete.9
  • Homelessness
    His campaign website calls for a treatment-first approach to homelessness instead of what it calls a one-size-fits-all Housing First approach, including mandatory treatment for people with severe addiction or serious mental illness, more psychiatric care, a national audit of homelessness spending and federal money tied to measurable results.14,15
  • Large investors buying single-family homes
    His campaign website's housing plan supports higher costs and more restrictions on investors buying three or more homes, with the money going to the first-time buyer fund.9
  • Asylum rules
    His campaign website says asylum claims should have to be filed at U.S. embassies or designated centers abroad.16
  • Legal immigration levels
    His campaign website says he would streamline legal immigration for skilled workers, family reunification and humanitarian cases, give priority to areas of economic need such as agriculture, technology and health care, and create an online application system.16
  • Targeted tax breaks for individuals and families
    Add or expand breaks for costs such as education savings, adoption and selling a home
    His campaign website's plans call for a caregiver tax credit, tax-free savings accounts for child care and for buying a home (including letting unused 529 college savings roll into a housing account), and changes to capital gains taxes on the sale of owner-occupied homes.9,13,17

Issue statements are drafted by AI from the public sources cited, and only cover what each candidate has said publicly.