Outgoing Rep. T.J. Cox has declared an intention to run again for California s 21st Congressional District seat, though it was unclear Friday how committed he remains because his candidacy paperwork was filed weeks before he ultimately conceded losing the Nov. 3 General Election.
The Selma Democrat indicated in a Nov. 13 filing with the Federal Election Commission he would run for the seat he ended up losing by a slim margin to Hanford Republican David Valadao, who held the seat for three terms before narrowly losing to Cox in 2018. Cox conceded defeat Dec. 4.
A spokesman for Cox could not be reached for comment.
Republican Congressman-elect David Valadao hasn t taken office yet and already a Democrat has stepped forward to challenge him in 2022 with a strike-first strategy that is raising eyebrows in local political circles.
Former 30th District Assemblywoman Nicole Parra announced late last week on social media she hopes to take on the Hanford dairyman whose narrow defeat of Rep. T.J. Cox, D-Selma, in California s majority Democratic, heavily Hispanic 21st Congressional District was a reversal from election results two years earlier.
Parra s declaration even before the district s boundaries are redrawn next year was viewed by political observers as a bold if possibly premature effort by a recognizable candidate looking to return to the family business and become the district s first Hispanic congresswoman.