Rep. Derek Tran has won reelection to California’s 45th Congressional District over Republican challenger Chuong Vo, the Associated Press declared just before 11 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3.
Tran, D-Orange, jumped out to an initial large lead when preliminary results from the California secretary of state’s office were released shortly after 8 p.m. He maintained his lead as more votes continued to be tallied Tuesday night.
The 45th Congressional District includes Cerritos in L.A. County, as well as Buena Park, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Garden Grove and Westminster in Orange County.
Tran is finishing up his first term in Congress, where he represents a district that includes Orange County’s Little Saigon, home to the largest Vietnamese population outside of that country.
In a statement, Tran said that his election to Congress in 2024 was a message from the community “that delivered a loud, resounding NO to the corruption that has dominated this administration and the Republican Party.” Tuesday night’s win, he said, “made it even clearer — they want leadership that cares about them.”
“I am humbled to learn that our community has placed their trust in me again to represent them,” Tran said. “This win belongs to all of us. To the people in this room. To everyone who knocked on a door, made a call, or believed in what we could do together … Now let’s get back to work.”
A Republican, Vo is a former police officer who served for nearly three decades. He could not be immediately reached for comment late Tuesday.
Both candidates are children of Vietnamese refugees and have pointed to their families’ experiences when talking about immigration policy.
Tran’s father, like many others, fled Vietnam by boat after the fall of Saigon, but the boat capsized, killing his wife and children. His father would remarry, and the two would successfully leave Vietnam and settle in the U.S. Tran was born and raised in Los Angeles County, according to his House bio.
Vo came to the U.S. from Vietnam as a refugee with his parents. On his campaign website, Vo noted that “like so many immigrant families, I’m grateful to a country that gave my family a chance, and I want to keep that promise alive for the next generation.”
Democrats account for 38.77% (175,995 people) of registered voters in the district, according to the latest statistics from the California secretary of state’s office. Republicans, meanwhile, account for 30.08% (136,536), and no party preference 25.29% (114,816).