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Ballot Explained

U.S. House · November 3, 2026

Who's running in California's 43rd 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
Maxine Waters
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 · Maxine Waters 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.

  • Nothing documented in the sources reviewed.

What they’ve actually done

Documented record from official sources.

  • Manufacturing executive.
  • Born in Guatemala City; management degree from Purdue University (2002) and a graduate degree in industrial and labour relations from Cornell University (2008).
  • Has not held elected office.
  • Took 20.2% in the June 2, 2026 primary, finishing second; the Associated Press called his advance.

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 Morales by name could be found: not from Maxine Waters 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.
  • His positions and record were not stated in material available.
  • His fundraising totals were not reported in material available.
Sources:wtop.comballotpedia.orgfec.govballotpedia.org

What they say they stand for

Their own words. Claims, not verified facts.

  • Financial services regulation and consumer protection, her committee's jurisdiction.
  • Affordable housing and homelessness funding.
  • Civil rights and policing accountability.
  • Federal investment in south Los Angeles County.

What they’ve actually done

Documented record from official sources.

  • U.S. Representative since January 1991; re-elected in 2024 with 75.1%.
  • Ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee; chaired it from 2019 to 2023.
  • Member of the California State Assembly for fourteen years before Congress.
  • Took 61.8% in the June 2, 2026 primary.

Arguments in favor

  • She chaired the House Financial Services Committee and wrote provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act; her record since 1990 has been built on affordable housing, financial regulation and civil rights.

    — Almanac of American Politics

  • The House Ethics Committee cleared her after a 38-month investigation, dropping the charges against her in 2012.

    — House Committee on Ethics, reported by IVN and NBC News

Arguments against

  • House Republicans led by Kevin McCarthy moved to censure her over remarks during the Derek Chauvin trial urging protesters to "get more confrontational"; the motion was tabled 216–210 on party lines, and Minnesota's Republican delegation had called for the censure.

    — Kevin McCarthy's censure resolution and the Minnesota Republican delegation, reported by Fox News and Axios

What we couldn’t verify

  • The censure attempt dates from 2021; no criticism of her by name from Cristian Morales's campaign or from the National Republican Congressional Committee was found for this cycle.
  • Waters's answer to it was that "Republicans love to use me as a target".
  • The district's boundaries changed under Proposition 50, approved in November 2025; how that changes her position was not established from the sources found.
Sources:ballotpedia.orgwaters.house.govsuncommercial.comballotpedia.orgalmanacofamericanpolitics.substack.comivn.usfoxnews.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.

California's June 2, 2026 top-two primary sent Democratic incumbent Maxine Waters, with 61.8%, and Republican Cristian Morales, with 20.2%, to the November ballot; two other Democrats were eliminated. The district covers Inglewood and parts of south Los Angeles County and is rated D+27. Neither candidate is listed with arguments for or against here: no published criticism of either candidate by name from someone opposing them in this race 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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