The race for the Sacramento area’s 7th Congressional District has narrowed down to two Democrats. Thursday night, Congresswoman Doris Matsui and Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang met face-to-face at a debate described by onlookers as contentious and even a bit “spicy.”
It was held at the Coloma Community Center in East Sacramento and moderated by the League of Women Voters.
It’s the first time the two have debated on stage since Vang narrowly defeated the longtime incumbent in the June primary. The last time they met, there were six candidates. This time, it was just the two of them.
Vang used the forum to push back against Matsui’s argument that she’s effective in Congress because of her seniority in the U.S. House of Representatives. Instead, Vang countered that the lives of Californians’ have gotten worse while Matsui has been in office.
“If seniority would have saved us, we wouldn’t be here today under the Trump administration,” Vang said. “You have seniority now and the lives of people in our region haven’t gotten better.”
This year was the first time Matsui has lost a primary. Vang finished about two points ahead of Matsui in June. Matsui won the seat after a special election in 2005, following her husband’s death. Her husband Robert Matsui had held it since 1979. Together, they have represented the Sacramento area in Washington for nearly five decades.
Matsui said this summer her second-place finish in the primary showed voters are frustrated with what’s happening in Washington and want more from their elected leaders. She added she’ll keep bringing in federal dollars to support the region.
Matsui, while in Congress, has built seniority, shown by her holding a seat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and has made federal funding for Sacramento-area infrastructure a centerpiece of her reelection argument. She has helped secure billions of dollars for regional flood protection at the Folsom Dam and along Sacramento levees.
“I think you don’t quite understand how Congress works because you just can’t go in there and decide to do something,” Matsui said to Vang at Thursday’s debate. “You really have to build the relationships and build coalitions to do this.”
During her first-ever run for Congress, Vang has advocated for free health care and vowed not to take corporate fundraising. Matsui has emphasized her long record in the U.S. House and said that experience helps her deliver results for the Sacramento region.
Nathan Gonzalez, editor of the nonpartisan Inside Elections, told CapRadio in July that Matsui was at “significant risk of losing re-election.” He said longtime Democratic incumbents around the country have faced growing pressure from voters looking for someone younger and with a more aggressive political message.
The incumbent entered the primary with big name support including from Democratic leaders Governor Gavin Newsom and Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty along with a majority of the Sacramento City Council.
Vang, meanwhile, is making her first run for national office after kicking off her political career on the Sacramento City Council in December 2020.
Ana Murillo came in person to see the candidates make their case up close. “I definitely see them as valuable, especially for people who are still undecided,” Murillo said. “I think seeing, you know, a new candidate like Mai and just seeing how they answer questions or it’s really going to help voters make their final decision.”
Murillo added she is ready to see some change in the seat and supports Vang, and that as an immigrant, it’s important that whoever wins is vocal about “abolishing ICE.”
She is not feeling like Matsui is doing enough with her seniority and has lost touch with voters.
“I just think it’s definitely time for a new change. I think all around the country we seen progressive candidates, especially with like the Mamdani in New York and seen the things he’s changing. I just think it’s time for new leadership.”
The district was redrawn under Proposition 50 last fall. It now stretches from central Sacramento through Elk Grove and Galt.
Alana Edgar, was at Thursday’s forum, and said she’s lived in Elk Grove since she was 8 years old. She said she was surprised how “spicy” the debate was between the two candidates.
“I liked that they kind of went after each other,” Edgar continued. “I feel like some questions went unanswered. I don’t know if they’ll have another forum, but I’m hoping in the next one they can kind of dial into the specifics more.”
Campaign funding was a big point of contention at the debate. Vang criticized Matsui for taking donations from defense contractors, prison contractors and funds tied to Israel. Vang said that Matsui couldn’t “move with a sense of urgency” in Washington on issues like the Iran war, the conflict in Palestine and ICE detention centers.
Matsui questioned why Vang knew so much about Matsui’s campaign contributions.
“You know more about the things in my campaign record than anyone else does. I can’t believe it,” Matsui said. “I don’t even know what companies you’re talking about right now. Some of those companies also do other things, too.”
That statement surprised attendee Rin Ramirez, who’s lived in Carmichael for the last nine years.
“That felt hilarious to me, but sad for [Matsui], because she should know what’s going on in her campaign,” Ramirez said.
Another attendee, Taylor Muckler-Vargas, said he thought Vang “underperformed.” He also said he didn’t like how heated the forum got.
“I think you get into dangerous territory when you’re contentious and you go about it that way,” Muckler-Vargas said. “I think that’s kind of where we’re at in this country where we’re just kind of fighting a little too much.”
Voters will choose between them to represent the Sacramento region this fall. The general election is on November 3.
CapRadio provides a trusted source of news because of you. As a nonprofit organization, donations from people like you sustain the journalism that allows us to discover stories that are important to our audience. If you believe in what we do and support our mission, please donate today.