Who is running in California’s 2nd Congressional District?
After the passage of Proposition 50, California’s 2nd Congressional District still retains the cliff-lined and rugged seashore known as the North Coast, that runs from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Oregon border.
Historically, Marin, Sonoma, Mendocino, Humboldt, Trinity and Del Norte counties have all fallen within the 2nd District. But with the redrawn maps, for the next three years, portions of some of those counties were drawn into the 1st District to increase its Democratic voter count. Meanwhile, the 2nd District picked up a new, and large, swath of inland Northern California. It now includes Modoc, Shasta and Siskiyou counties.
It is as diverse economically, geographically and politically a district as one could imagine in California. It includes some of the wealthiest ZIP codes in the state in Marin County, and some of California’s most economically distressed rural areas. Mt. Shasta, redwood forests, the Trinity Alps and the Modoc Plateau are just a few of the new district’s natural wonders.
Many of the new voters added to the district are Republican-leaning, but because of its maintaining of Marin and other concentrations of Democratic-leaning voters, it remains a safe district for that party.
Rep. Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, has represented the 2nd District since 2013, and is running for reelection in 2026. Below the map showing the changes to the district boundary is information about the incumbent candidate and his six current challengers, in alphabetical order.
Gregory Burgess (no party preference)
Burgess, 61, described himself in a candidate questionnaire for the website Ballotpedia as a longtime public servant who has worn various hats, from special education teacher to school bus drive to an engineer on artificial intelligence programming in the medical field, among others. He is running without party affiliation.
Among the key issues he posted to Ballotpedia was a desire to cap campaign donations and push back on The Nature Conservancy’s efforts to convert working ranches into preserved land in Point Reyes National Seashore. The Federal Election Commission reports that Burgess has not raised any money as of Feb. 13, and The Sacramento Bee was unable to locate a campaign website.
Kevin Eisele (D)
On his campaign website, Eisele, 56, describes himself as a “working class” Democrat and former U.S. Army medic and health care worker. He described Huffman as being an “establishment Democrat” and touts progressive causes, such as universal health care, free community college and a federal jobs guarantee — a policy in which the federal government would guarantee a job for any working-age adult through the creation of robust infrastructure, health care and community development programs. The FEC also does not report any fundraising for Eisele as yet.
Jared Huffman (D)
Huffman, 61, an environmental attorney, served in the California Assembly before successfully running for Congress in 2012, according to his biography. Today, he is the ranking Democrat on the powerful Natural Resources Committee and considered one of the foremost environmentalists serving in Washington, D.C.
He founded the Congressional Freethought Caucus, which seeks to protect the secular nature of American government — in other words, to push back on efforts to codify religious belief into law and policy. Though several of his primary opponents are challenging Huffman from the left, he often aligns with the more progressive wing of Democrats in Congress.
During the last presidential election, he was an early alarm ringer about Project 25, conservatives’ blueprint for President Donald Trump’s second term, and also was among the first wave of Democratic congress members to call for President Joe Biden to step out of the race. Huffman reported having $1 million in his campaign account at the end of 2025, according to the FEC.
Paul Saulsbury (R)
So far the only registered Republican in the primary race, Saulsbury, 45, is a mental health professional, according to his campaign website. Saulsbury registered to run with the FEC using a Redding address — a community that joined the 2nd District as a result of Proposition 50.
He is running to improve mental health services, including by bolstering crisis response and treatment programs. He is also focused on wildfire prevention and lowering the cost of living in California. The FEC does not report any fundraising by Saulsbury, though if he remains the only Republican candidate he should ultimately receive financial support from the statewide party. If no other Republican enters the race, the district’s demographics suggest Saulsbury has a good chance to face a Democrat in the general election, where he’d have to win over a considerable number of Democratic voters to succeed.
Rose Penelope Yee (D)
The third Democratic candidate currently in the race is a Redding resident and chair of the Democratic Central Committee of Shasta County, according to her campaign website. Yee, 65, is also running as a progressive Democrat, calling for universal health care, affordable housing and curtailing military spending to instead better fund social services.
Her website particularly takes aim on U.S. military spending to support Israel’s actions in Gaza, which she labels a genocide. “The lobbyists, billionaires, and war profiteers are doing just fine — but families in Northern California are getting squeezed,” her website says. Yee grew up in the Philippines during an era of martial law, and her bio says she participated in street protests against that country’s military dictatorship. The FEC does not report any fundraising by Yee yet, but she lists a number of organizational and individual endorsements on her site.
This story was originally published February 17, 2026 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Who is running in California’s 2nd Congressional District?."
