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Ballot Explained

U.S. House · November 3, 2026

Who's running in California's 23rd congressional district

2 candidates are on the ballot. Below is what each one says they stand for, what they have actually done in office or in public life, and the arguments published for and against them — each quoted from a named source rather than summarised by us.

Candidates
2
Incumbent
Jay Obernolte
Parties
Democratic · Republican
State primary
Jun 2

Candidates appear in ballot order. We do not rank them, score them, or recommend one — here is how this is put together, and here is what the office actually does.

2 candidates · ballot order · Jay Obernolte currently holds this seat

Medium confidenceMedium confidenceThe candidate's stated positions and basic record are documented, but coverage is thin — often little independent reporting, or criticism from only one side.What would raise it: More independent reporting, a documented voting record, or published criticism from a named opponent would raise this.

What they say they stand for

Their own words. Claims, not verified facts.

  • Affordable health care; she names access as the district's biggest problem and proposes expanding medical education programmes to address the shortage of health professionals.
  • Housing affordability.
  • Public education.
  • Environmental protection.
  • Workers' rights.
  • Addressing what she calls the root causes of inequality, addiction, poor mental health and poverty at the policy level.

What they’ve actually done

Documented record from official sources.

  • Licensed clinical social worker with close to ten years working in behavioural health and education.
  • Worked for San Bernardino County implementing state and federal legislation into county policy.
  • Lifelong resident of the district.
  • Has not held elected office.
  • Advanced from the June 2, 2026 top-two primary.

Arguments in favor

We found none published about this candidate in the sources reviewed.

Arguments against

We found none published about this candidate in the sources reviewed.

What we couldn’t verify

  • No published criticism of Hodge by name could be found: not from Jay Obernolte or his campaign, not from the National Republican Congressional Committee, and not from High Desert or Inland Empire news coverage. Because no case against her exists on the record, none is presented for her either, rather than showing her own campaign's case unanswered.
  • Her positions and record were not stated in material available.
  • Her fundraising totals were not reported in material available.
Their campaign site ↗Sources:tessaforca.comcommunityforwardredlands.combakersfieldnow.comballotpedia.org

What they say they stand for

Their own words. Claims, not verified facts.

  • Economic growth.
  • Public safety.
  • Water infrastructure for the high desert.
  • Technology and artificial intelligence policy, the area of his professional background.

What they’ve actually done

Documented record from official sources.

  • U.S. Representative for the 23rd District since January 2021; re-elected in 2024 with 60.1%.
  • Computer scientist and video game developer; the only member of Congress with a graduate degree in artificial intelligence.
  • Former mayor of Big Bear Lake and member of the California State Assembly.
  • Led the June 2, 2026 primary field.
  • Did not return the Community Forward Redlands candidate questionnaire.

Arguments in favor

  • He is the House's most technically literate voice on artificial intelligence and argues the federal government must "go first" in setting a national AI framework rather than leaving fifty state regimes; he describes the 2025 moratorium as "very misunderstood" and originally "a messaging amendment".

    — Jay Obernolte, quoted by Route Fifty

  • He chairs the subcommittee work on AI regulation and US leadership, taking the argument through hearings rather than press releases.

    — House subcommittee hearing transcript published by Tech Policy Press

Arguments against

  • His own constituents oppose the AI agenda he is pushing: 56% oppose weakening California's laws on catastrophic AI risk, 58% oppose weakening the state's chatbot laws, and 60% oppose speeding up data centre permitting by bypassing local community input.

    — Tech Oversight Project district polling conducted by TOP-PPP

  • The ten-year ban on state-level AI protections he championed is a "Big Tech giveaway", and constituents have organised publicly against it.

    — Common Cause California

What we couldn’t verify

  • The Tech Oversight Project is an advocacy organisation campaigning against the policies it polled on; the survey was not independently replicated in the sources found.
  • No criticism of him by name from Tessa Lynn Hodge's campaign or from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee was found.
  • The district's boundaries changed under Proposition 50, approved in November 2025; how that changes his position was not established from the sources found.
Sources:communityforwardredlands.comen.wikipedia.orgdeserttrumpet.orgballotpedia.orgroute-fifty.comtechoversight.orgcommoncause.org

Positions and criticism are quoted from the named sources, not our assessments. This is built to help you start getting informed — confirm the official candidate list with your election authority before you vote.

California's June 2, 2026 top-two primary sent Republican incumbent Jay Obernolte and Democrat Tessa Lynn Hodge to the November ballot. The district covers the high desert of San Bernardino County and reaches into Redlands. Neither candidate is listed with arguments for or against here: Hodge criticises Obernolte by name, but no published criticism of Hodge by name from anyone opposing her could be found, and setting out a case against one candidate and not the other would tilt the page.

This is one contest on a longer ballot

A California ballot also carries state legislative districts, county offices, judicial seats and often local questions — and which of them you vote on is decided by your street address, not your city or ZIP code.

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