Josh Harder

Josh Harder

Democratic Party

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Elections and appointments

Last elected

November 6, 2018

Education

Bachelor's

Stanford University

Graduate

Harvard University

Contact

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Josh Harder is the Democratic representative from California's 10th Congressional District in the U.S. House. Harder was elected to the office on November 6, 2018.

2018 battleground election

See also: California's 10th Congressional District election, 2018

This candidate's election was identified as a 2018 battleground race. The following content comes from our coverage of that election here.

In California's 10th Congressional District, venture capitalist Josh Harder (D) defeated incumbent Rep. Jeff Denham (R) in the general election on November 6, 2018.

All 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives were up for election in 2018. As of 3:45 p.m. ET on November 12, 2018, eight U.S. House elections remained too close to call. The Democratic Party had gained a net total of 32 seats, winning control of the chamber. This race was identified as a 2018 battleground that might have affected partisan control of the U.S. House in the 116th Congress. Heading into the election, the Republican Party was in the majority holding 235 seats to Democrats' 193 seats, with seven vacant seats. Democrats needed to win 23 GOP-held seats in 2018 to win control of the House. From 1918 to 2016, the president’s party lost an average of 29 seats in midterm elections.

Denham, first elected in 2010, was one of seven California Republicans who represented a district won by Hillary Clinton in 2016. This district was one of 25 Republican-held U.S. House districts that Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election, while Denham won his 2016 election by 3.4 percentage points. Prior to Denham's election, the district was represented by Democrat Ellen Tauscher for fourteen years.

Elections

2018

See also: California's 10th Congressional District election, 2018

General election

General election for U.S. House California District 10

Josh Harder (D) defeated incumbent Jeff Denham (R) in the general election for U.S. House California District 10 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Josh Harder  (D)	51.3	96,320
		Jeff Denham  (R)	48.7	91,401

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Incumbents are bolded and underlined. Source

Total votes: 187,721

Primary election

Primary for U.S. House California District 10

The following candidates ran in the primary for U.S. House California District 10 on June 5, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jeff Denham  (R)	37.5	45,719
✔		Josh Harder  (D)	17.0	20,742
		Ted Howze  (R)	14.6	17,723
		Michael Eggman  (D)	10.2	12,446
		Virginia Madueno  (D)	9.2	11,178
		Sue Zwahlen  (D)	8.2	9,945
		Mike Barkley  (D)	2.4	2,904
		Dotty Nygard  (D)	0.9	1,100

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Incumbents are bolded and underlined. It has been certified.

Total votes: 121,757

General election

General election for U.S. House California District 10

Josh Harder (D) defeated incumbent Jeff Denham (R) in the general election for U.S. House California District 10 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Josh Harder  (D)	51.3	96,320
		Jeff Denham  (R)	48.7	91,401

---

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. Source

Total votes: 187,721

Primary election

Primary for U.S. House California District 10

The following candidates ran in the primary for U.S. House California District 10 on June 5, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jeff Denham  (R)	37.5	45,719
✔		Josh Harder  (D)	17.0	20,742
		Ted Howze  (R)	14.6	17,723
		Michael Eggman  (D)	10.2	12,446
		Virginia Madueno  (D)	9.2	11,178
		Sue Zwahlen  (D)	8.2	9,945
		Mike Barkley  (D)	2.4	2,904
		Dotty Nygard  (D)	0.9	1,100

---

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. It has been certified.

Total votes: 121,757

Candidate profile

Josh Harder, venture capitalist

Party: Democratic

Incumbent: No

Political office: None

Biography: Harder's professional experience includes working at Bessemer Venture Partners and the Boston Consulting Group. He has also worked with the Gates Foundation and other nonprofit organizations. Harder received his M.B.A. and M.P.P. from Harvard University and his B.A. from Stanford University.

Key messages

• Harder stated that if elected, he would "work with Republicans, Democrats, and Independents to help our local farms and businesses prosper by investing in education and infrastructure and helping to create more good paying jobs."

• Harder listed Medicare for All, immigration, and job creation among campaign priorities on his website.

• Harder's campaigned released an ad criticizing Denham for a vote that he said took health insurance away from 100,000 people in the district and eliminated pre-existing condition protections. Harder said if elected, he would make sure everyone has healthcare they can afford.

Polls

See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls

California's 10th Congressional District election, 2018
Poll	Poll sponsor	Jeff Denham	Josh Harder	Undecided	Margin of Error	Sample Size
NYT Upshot/Siena College October 21-25, 2018	The New York Times	45%	47%	8%	+/-4.9	501
Institute of Governmental Studies September 16-23, 2018	None	45%	50%	5%	+/-5.0	726
Note: A "0%" finding means the question was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected]

Click [show] to see poll results from the primary election

California's 10th Congressional District election, Top-two primary election: Harder vs. Denham Poll Jeff Denham Josh Harder Sample Size Anzalone Liszt Grove Research March 13-15, 2018 48% 37% 400 Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected]

Campaign finance

The chart below details the campaign finance statements reported to the Federal Election Commission.

Name	Party	Receipts*	Disbursements**	Cash on hand	Date
Jeff Denham	Republican Party	$4,117,126	$2,507,434	$1,936,144	As of September 30, 2018
Josh Harder	Democratic Party	$6,091,868	$4,568,976	$1,522,892	As of September 30, 2018
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2018. * According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." ** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.

Satellite spending

Satellite spending, commonly referred to as outside spending, describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.

This section lists satellite spending in this race reported by news outlets in alphabetical order. If you are aware of spending that should be included, please email us.

• The American Action Network announced a $1 million ad campaign targeting California's 10th District and 25 other congressional districts on March 26, 2018. The group's 10th District ad asked voters to thank incumbent Jeff Denham (R) for supporting the tax bill passed by Congress in December 2017.
  • The Los Angeles Times reported on January 3, 2018, that the American Action Network had made a six-figure TV and digital ad buy on behalf of Denham and three other Republican members of the California congressional delegation. The group's ads thank the members for their support for the tax bill that was passed by Congress in December 2017. Click here to view the ad featuring Denham.

• The American Bankers Association had spent $75,000 supporting Denham as of October 13, 2018.

• The Congressional Leadership Fund reported spending $1.8 million backing Denham as of early October.

• The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee reported spending $543,871 to help Harder as of early October.

• The National Republican Congressional Committee announced it had spent about $800,000 on an ad against Harder on October 16, 2018.

• Onward Together, a political action committee formed by Hillary Clinton, donated $5,000 to Harder in June 2018.

• PAC for a Change, a political action committee led by former U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), reported spending $500 on media production and $1,500 on a media buy for an ad opposing Denham on December 20, 2017.

Race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Race ratings: California's 10th Congressional District election, 2018
Race tracker	Race ratings
	October 30, 2018	October 23, 2018	October 16, 2018	October 9, 2018
The Cook Political Report	Toss-up	Toss-up	Toss-up	Toss-up
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales	Toss-up	Toss-up	Toss-up	Toss-up
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball	Toss-up	Toss-up	Toss-up	Toss-up
Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every two weeks throughout the election season.

Campaign themes

2018

Campaign website

Harder's campaign website stated the following:

Fight for Medicare for All

By voting for Trumpcare, Mr. Denham has once again put his party ahead of the people he’s supposed to represent. In this campaign, I will work to make sure every resident of California’s 10th district knows that their congressman voted to take away health coverage from 23 million Americans and eliminate protections for people with pre-existing conditions. Nonpartisan estimates calculate that 100,000 individuals in the CA-10 would have lost healthcare coverage as a result of Jeff Denham’s vote. He even voted in favor of allowing insurance companies to make pregnancy a pre-existing condition for which coverage may be denied. I will work to improve our healthcare system, not devastate it:

• Double down on the part of our healthcare system that works best by expanding Medicare to encompass all Americans. For private insurers, nearly 1 in 6 dollars goes to administrative costs. For Medicare, it’s 1 in 50. Furthermore, polls show Medicare beneficiaries are more satisfied with their insurance than those with private plans.

• Provide immediate relief by making common-sense fixes to strengthen the Affordable Care Act. Insurance premiums on the ACA marketplace in Stanislaus County rose 24% in 2018. We can provide short-term relief by increasing competition on the marketplaces by letting people buy into Medicare, curtailing prescription drug prices, and bringing more people into the marketplace.

• Reduce healthcare costs to ensure the long-term sustainability of our system. America spends far more on healthcare than any other country, but we’re less healthy. The big drug companies jack up prices on life-saving medicines that can be bought for a fraction of the cost in Canada. And for too many working people, premiums, co-pays, and deductibles are so expensive that they can’t even afford to use the insurance they have. It’s time to attack high costs by targeting monopolistic practices and price gouging; allowing imports of medicine from Canada; and doing more to pay providers for the quality of care, not just the volume.

Encourage fair and humane immigration reform

For years, Mr. Denham has paid lip service to immigration reform in the Valley while doing nothing in Washington to solve the problem. He'll cosponsor and support bills up until they have a real chance of being passed, and then back away to please his party. Now, by supporting the Trump Administration, he is making our immigration problems even worse.

Denham supports Trump’s wasteful and ineffective wall. Furthermore, he’s remained silent while this administration has broken up families and deported law-abiding immigrants who own businesses and create jobs.

I will fight for our immigrant communities and push back against Trump's devastating policies:

• Get relief for our Dreamers NOW. I see DREAMers every day as a teacher at Modesto Junior College. These are the bright stars of our community who just want to work hard to create a better life for themselves and their families. Jeff Denham has recklessly endangered these individuals by refusing to vote for a clean DREAM ACT to come to the floor. I will fight every day to protect my students and young immigrants nationwide.

• Fight for a Pathway to Citizenship. America is a nation of immigrants and we rely on immigrant labor to keep our economic engine humming. Nowhere is that more obvious than in the Central Valley, where immigrants are the bedrock of our community. We need to welcome these hardworking individuals out of the shadows and provide them a simple pathway to citizenship.

• Pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform. In 2013 we had a bill passed by the Senate and approved by Obama that was waiting for the House, yet Denham backed his political party and kept the bill from reaching the floor. It's time to elect a representative that will work to pass such a bill: one that not only reforms our immigration process to make it simpler but also enhances our border patrol to keep our country safe.

Create more good jobs for the Valley

I’m running for Congress because I’m tired of seeing the Valley’s economy fall behind. Our unemployment rate is double the California average. After 17 years in politics, Jeff Denham’s only idea to improve our economy is to give even more tax breaks to the very wealthy. How does that benefit the farmers, small businesses, and families of the Central Valley?

In my business career, I have helped entrepreneurs and small companies develop their ideas and grow high-paying jobs. As your Representative, I will work to help small businesses and working-class Americans have the opportunities they need to be successful. In Congress, I will:

• Build on our success in agriculture by working to make the Valley the agricultural technology capital of the nation.

• Work to make college and technical training programs more affordable and accessible in the Valley, including by fighting for tuition-free community and technical college.

• Invest in infrastructure, so that new companies have a strong foundation from which to build.

• Fund apprenticeship programs that teach students the skills local companies need. We need to make sure our graduates have pathways to careers that have a future.

Build a sustainable water future for the Central Valley

Water has been the critical issue for agriculture in the Valley since my great-great-grandfather began farming in Manteca more than 170 years ago, and we will never solve our problems by shipping it to Southern California. For too long, politicians have haggled over our water crisis instead of working to solve it. I’ll work with Republicans and Democrats alike to find solutions to secure our water supply for future generations. That starts with three things:

• Invest in water efficiency by providing tax incentives for Farmers to buy micro irrigation drips. They've been shown to dramatically decrease water usage while increasing production.

• Build more water storage so that when it does rain we use it to recharge our aquifers and groundwater. Six years of drought were followed by one year of flooding. We have to be better prepared to take advantage of the rain when it comes.

• Increase water production with a system of inland desalination plants. As the coastal cities grow, we can't sacrifice the Valley's economy. Instead, we have to find ways of increasing the water supply directly at the source.

End Citizens United and institute electoral reform

Corporate greed and Super PACs are corrupting our political system and nowhere is that more obvious than in our electoral process. Jeff Denham has been bought and sold by corporations and the Republican party, taking more than 70% of his contributions from special interests. That is why I have taken a pledge to refuse Corporate PAC donations.

• Support an amendment that says corporations are NOT people. Corporations aren't born, they can't vote, and they shouldn’t be able to spend unlimited amounts of money to influence our elections. We need to take their power away and to do that we need to amend the constitution.

• Advocate for an individuals right to vote and reinstitute the Voting Rights Amendment that was recently rolled back by the Supreme Court.

• Fight against gerrymandering nationwide. Representatives are chosen by the people, not the other way around. I will advocate for fair practices in drawing districts that keep like communities together instead of building districts which protect those in power.

Defend women's rights and access to healthcare

I will be a fierce advocate for women’s rights, including supporting their economic security and reproductive rights. I will defend Planned Parenthood against attacks to stop reimbursement for critical medical care like cancer screenings and STD testing.

• Advocate for a woman's right to choose as well as access to affordable and quality reproductive services.

• Support efforts to institute paid family leave. America is the only advanced economy in the world without guaranteed family leave, which often affects our poorest workers the most. I also support expanding early childhood education, which helps working parents afford the high costs of childcare.

• Strengthen protections in the workplace setting up systems that punish sexual predators, empower victims, and promote equal pay.

Create quality public schools for all Valley kids

I was educated in the public schools of Turlock and Modesto, and I firmly believe in the power of public education to create opportunity, because that is what it did for me. I am committed to ensuring that every child in the Central Valley has access to a world-class education that will prepare them for any future.

Now, the same public schools that gave me a head start are threatened by the Trump Administration. I will:

• Fight against the Trump and DeVos scheme to privatize our education

• Work to modernize our schools not only with new technology but also investments in STEAM and computer science.

• Fight to increase teacher pay

• Ensure access to affordable, equitable, high-quality universal pre-kindergarten education.

• Fight to make college more affordable and accessible. Too many students are crippled with high debt loads right as they start their careers. I will fight to make community college and vocational training programs tuition-free and invest in our public universities so more students have access.

Protect the Environment

The Central Valley has some of the most productive soil and land in the world. I believe we must be good stewards of our water, air, and land resources to make sure their use is conserved for the next generation.

Like many children in the Central Valley, I grew up with childhood asthma because of our high air pollution. We can and must improve our adherence to clean air and water standards and invest in our children’s health.

I strongly believe in the scientific consensus that climate change is real and man-made. I will fight back against the Trump Administration’s dangerous attempts to undermine the Environmental Protection Agency and undo international agreements on climate change. Instead, we must make sure there are adequate incentives to invest in clean energy sources and move away from polluting fossil fuels.

Reduce gun violence

Our country is plagued by school shootings, gun-related suicide, and gang-related shootings. Here in California, we stepped up to reduce gun violence and have since seen the effectiveness of 10-day waiting periods, assault weapons restrictions, and background checks. Instead of advocating to take these successes nationwide, Denham has looked to undermine California state and local laws, endanger our law enforcement, and make it easier for dangerous individuals to walk around carrying guns. It's clear that he has been bought by the NRA and the gun industry. I will:

• Protect responsible gun owners and their right to protect their family. We must ensure the right for responsible gun owners to be able to hunt and protect their home is respected, along with the 2nd amendment.

• Take the successes we've seen in California nationwide. In California, we've seen a huge reduction in gun deaths thanks to our common sense reforms. That's why I don't want to change anything for gun owners here in the Central Valley, but take our reforms and institute them nationwide. Not only will this help protect the people living across the country, but it will also reduce the ability for criminals, domestic abusers, and terrorists here in the Central Valley to get their hands on guns.

See also

Suggest a link

• United States House of Representatives
• California's 10th Congressional District election, 2018
• California's 10th Congressional District

External links

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• Campaign website