CHOWCHILLA, Calif.—U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson traveled to the small Central Valley city of Chowchilla to campaign for Republican congressional candidate Kevin Lincoln on Sept. 30.

Lincoln is running for California’s 13th Congressional District as Republicans seek to retain control of the House in November.

Chowchilla, an agricultural community in Madera County with around 20,000 residents, is located in the 13th District, which has produced two extraordinarily close elections in the past. The district has since been redrawn with new boundaries.

Johnson told supporters that he was in the middle of a six-week campaign swing that would take him to 40 congressional districts in 22 states over 34 days.

He said California’s 13th District was important enough to warrant a stop because control of the 435-seat House could ultimately be determined by only about 22 competitive races.

“This comes down to 22 battles,” Johnson said. “You need to fight for the Valley.”

Johnson said he frequently points to Lincoln while campaigning around the country.

“Everywhere I go, I use Kevin as an example, because California’s 13th District is one that should be in our column and one we can win,” Johnson said. “And we’ve got an extraordinary guy on the ticket.”

A Swing District

Democrat Adam Gray currently represents the district after defeating Republican incumbent John Duarte in 2024 by just 187 votes—105,554 to 105,367, or approximately 50.04 percent to 49.96 percent.

Rep. Adam Gray (D-Calif.) speaks during a "Protect Healthcare, Lower Costs" press conference on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sept. 11, 2025. (Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Economic Security Project)

Two years earlier, Duarte had defeated Gray by only 564 votes.

Lincoln, a former Stockton mayor, is challenging Gray in the Nov. 3 general election.

The district stretches across the heart of San Joaquin Valley, encompassing all of Merced County and portions of Madera, Stanislaus, San Joaquin, and Fresno counties. It has approximately 791,000 residents, with Hispanic residents comprising a majority of the population.

Agriculture has long shaped the region’s economy and identity. Besides farms and dairies, it includes food processing, transportation, warehousing, construction, retail, and small businesses. Water availability, irrigation, energy and fuel costs, agricultural regulations, housing, and the cost of living are recurring concerns for residents.

Lincoln emphasized the area’s Central Valley identity when introducing Johnson.

“These are farmers and farm workers who rise up early every morning to make sure that we move our country forward,” Lincoln said. “They’re small-business men and women who work tirelessly, day in and day out, and grind for a better future for their families.”

“This is the Central Valley,” he added. “We grow. We build. We serve. We sacrifice. But we never give up.”

Kevin Lincoln (C), the Republican candidate for California Congressional District 13, stands with supporters at his campaign event in Chowchilla on Sept. 30, 2026. (Nathan Su/The Epoch Times)

Campaign Priorities

Lincoln, a Marine Corps veteran and former pastor, became mayor of Stockton in 2020. He told the audience that his grandfather immigrated from Mexico, worked for more than 40 years at a Central Valley cannery, and became a U.S. citizen.

Lincoln has centered his congressional campaign on the cost of living, economic development, agricultural representation, and border security.

“When families talk at the kitchen table about cost of living, they know firsthand because they experience pain at the pump every single time they go to the gas station and fill up,” Lincoln said.

He said rising costs particularly affect farmers, truck drivers, commuters, and small-business owners.

Gray was born and raised in Merced and served in the California State Assembly from 2012 to 2022 before being elected to Congress in 2024. He currently serves on the House Agriculture Committee and the House Natural Resources Committee.

Gray has focused his campaign on affordability, water, agriculture, health care, and infrastructure. He has portrayed himself as a moderate Democrat willing to work across party lines and has emphasized increasing water supplies for Central Valley farms and communities, lowering household and health care costs, and securing federal resources for the district.

Lincoln told Johnson that residents of the Valley want their concerns heard in Washington.

“Our communities deserve to be seen. Our families deserve to be heard,” Lincoln said at the Chowchilla event. “And the people of the Central Valley deserve to know that their voices matter in the halls of Congress.”