Your guide to California’s 5th District congressional primary race
Three Democrats are running in the primary to represent California’s right-leaning 5th District in the U.S. House of Representatives, facing off against a longtime Republican incumbent.
U.S. Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Elk Grove) has represented most of the district’s communities since 2009 (the 4th District was redistricted into the 5th District starting in 2023, but still covers much of the same territory). None of the Democrats in the race — Mike Barkley, Michael Masuda and Dan Stroud — have held elected office, although one candidate, Barkley, has run for office unsuccessfully multiple times.
Where is the 5th Congressional District?
After redistricting under Proposition 50, which redrew California’s congressional boundaries to favor Democrats, the 5th Congressional District now spans much of Gold Country, covering Amador, Alpine, Calaveras, Tuolumne, Mariposa, Mono and much of Inyo counties, as well as parts of Stanislaus, El Dorado, San Joaquin, Fresno and Madera counties.
Who are the candidates?
McClintock, who served in the state Assembly and Senate before his election to Congress, is known as a staunch conservative who largely votes along Republican party lines. In 2024, he co-sponsored a bill to continue sending military funding to Israel. In September, he co-sponsored legislation to honor the “life and legacy” of Charlie Kirk, the slain political activist whose divisive positions polarized Americans. McClintock is also known for pushing back against federal administration of public lands, pushing for more local control on resources, as well as increased use of water for agricultural purposes.
Barkley, a trained attorney, has positioned himself as the anti-MAGA candidate. He has centered wildfire prevention in his campaign as well as addressing the rural homeowners insurance crisis. He has also called for strengthening reproductive rights, and supports expanding Medicare benefits to everyone.
Masuda, according to his campaign website, grew up in Amador County and is an engineer by training; he and his wife still live there with their two kids. He said his major issues are keeping rural hospitals open, tackling the high cost of housing as well as preparing for and mitigating the effects of wildfires through forest management. He has also said he wants to investigate insurance companies that have dropped rural homeowners due to fire risk.
Stroud is an Army veteran who, although he’s running as a Democrat, has espoused some conservative-leaning ideas. Like his opponents, he centers wildfire mitigation and housing affordability in his campaign platform. But he also proposes that school shootings should be prevented by bringing schools up to similar security standards as airports, with metal detectors, secure perimeters and security guards who may have military training.
Who is funding the race?
McClintock’s campaign has raised the most money. In the most recent batch of Federal Election Commission filings through March, he had $727,000 in net contributions. The second-place fundraiser was Masuda, with $209,000.
Barkley raised about $1,400 in net contributions, and he loaned his campaign $42,000. It appeared that Stroud had not filed any disclosures.
McClintock has some big-name donors in his list, including the real estate developer Angelo Tsakopoulos, who gave $7,000 to McClintock’s campaign, his wife Sofia, who gave another $7,000, and his son Kyriakos, who gave $3,500. Additionally, the Eureka Political Action Committee — sponsored by U.S. Rep. Ken Calvert, a Republican who represents parts of the Inland Empire in the House — has given $10,000 to McClintock in this election, as did the American Revival Political Action Committee, another conservative PAC. The Pechanga Band of Mission Indians and the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians each made $3,500 contributions to McClintock, alongside many other individuals and organizations.
Masuda’s biggest donor was ActBlue, a PAC and fundraising platform that supports liberal candidates.
