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Ballot Explained

U.S. House · November 3, 2026

Who's running in California's 38th 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
Open seat
Parties
Republican · Democratic
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 · open seat

Low confidenceLow confidenceOnly one weak source, dated material, or indirect evidence. Treat specifics with caution.What would raise it: An official filing record and at least one independent report about this candidate would raise this.

What they say they stand for

Their own words. Claims, not verified facts.

  • Securing the southern border and immigration rules that prioritise national security.
  • Addressing crime and a justice system he says rewards criminal behaviour.
  • Raising education standards.
  • Stopping the flow of fentanyl and other drugs to protect children.
  • Cutting federal spending to reduce the national debt.

What they’ve actually done

Documented record from official sources.

  • Retired U.S. Army colonel; served roughly 1994 to September 2023.
  • Psychologist by profession.
  • Republican candidate in California's 31st District in 2024.
  • Has not held elected office.
  • Took 40.1% in the June 2, 2026 primary as the only Republican in a four-candidate field.

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 Casas by name could be found: not from Hilda Solis or her campaign, not from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and not from Los Angeles news coverage. Because no case against him exists on the record, none is presented for him either, rather than showing his own campaign's case unanswered.
  • He is a psychologist and was the only Republican on the primary ballot, taking 40.1% to advance.
  • His positions and fundraising were not reported in material available.
Their campaign site ↗Sources:casasforcongress.comking5.comthehill.comvote-usa.org

What they say they stand for

Their own words. Claims, not verified facts.

  • Ensuring government works for the people rather than the powerful, the framing she used at her campaign launch.
  • Jobs and workforce policy, drawing on her time as Labor Secretary.
  • Health care access.
  • Housing.

What they’ve actually done

Documented record from official sources.

  • Los Angeles County supervisor for the 1st district since 2014.
  • U.S. Secretary of Labor, 2009 to 2013.
  • U.S. Representative for California's 31st and 32nd districts, 2001 to 2009.
  • Announced her campaign for the new 38th District on March 25, 2026.
  • Led the June 2, 2026 primary with 44.4%.

Arguments in favor

  • She has held this district's seat before and run a federal department: two terms in Congress for the old 31st and 32nd districts, then Secretary of Labor under Barack Obama, then twelve years on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

    — Hilda Solis's campaign, reported by The Hill

  • She led the four-candidate June primary with 44.4% and entered the race as the highest-profile candidate in the field.

    — Primary results reported by The Hill

Arguments against

  • The Los Angeles County supervisors, Solis among the five, escaped the scrutiny directed at the city's mayor over the January 2025 fires despite the county's own responsibilities — and the board she sits on advanced a plan trimming $219 million from homeless services and halving county street outreach.

    — CalMatters commentary on the supervisors' accountability, and LAist's reporting on the homeless services cuts

What we couldn’t verify

  • The CalMatters piece criticises the Board of Supervisors collectively rather than Solis by name; she is one of its five members. No criticism of her by name from Pedro Antonio Casas's campaign, from the National Republican Congressional Committee, or from Los Angeles news coverage was found.
  • Solis said of the homeless services plan that she was "not particularly happy with everything that I'm seeing", so her own position on those cuts is not straightforward.
  • The district's boundaries changed under Proposition 50, approved in November 2025; how that changes the seat was not established from the sources found.
Sources:nbclosangeles.comthehill.comtheeastsiderla.comballotpedia.orgcalmatters.orglaist.com

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.

This seat is open. Proposition 50 redrew the map and Rep. Linda Sánchez, who held the old 38th, chose to run in the new 41st instead. California's June 2, 2026 top-two primary sent Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis, with 44.4%, and Republican Pedro Casas, with 40.1%, to the November ballot; two Democratic councilmembers were eliminated. Neither candidate is listed with arguments for or against here: no published criticism of either candidate by name from someone opposing them could be found, and setting out a case against one 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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