Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Sacramento, and Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang appear headed for a November showdown in California\u2019s 7th Congressional District, according to early election returns.<\/p>\n
As of 11 p.m. Tuesday, Matsui led the race with about 31.7% percentage of votes counted, while Vang had captured about 24.9%.<\/p>\n
Zachariah Wooden, a Republican college student, trailed only slightly behind with 23.5% percentage of the vote. The top two vote-getters advance to the general election.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m grateful to the voters of this community for their support,\u201d Matsui said in a statement Tuesday night. \u201cThis campaign has provided me the opportunity to reconnect with so many people I\u2019ve represented and worked alongside for years, as well as getting to know new people and communities across this redrawn district.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said she was confident she would be re-elected for another term in the November general election.<\/p>\n
Matsui, a pillar of the Democratic establishment, has represented the Sacramento region district since 2005 when she succeeded her husband Robert after his death from cancer.<\/p>\n
U.S. Rep. Doris Matsui speaks to the press at Sellands on Broadway in Sacramento on primary election night on Tuesday, June 2, 2026. HANNAH RUHOFF hruhoff@sacbee.com <\/p>\n
Vang, who has served on Sacramento City Council since 2020, emerged as Matsui\u2019s most formidable primary challenger in years. She is part of a wave of progressive younger candidates trying to oust longtime and more moderate Democratic incumbents in safe blue seats across the country.<\/p>\n
The contest has grown increasingly bitter in recent weeks.<\/p>\n
Vang and her supporters criticized Matsui\u2019s immigration voting record<\/a>, highlighted her history of accepting corporate donations and accused her of elevating Republican candidate Wooden on her campaign website.<\/a><\/p>\n Matsui\u2019s campaign countered by attacking Vang for accepting corporate contributions from Sacramento-area businesses during her City Council campaigns<\/a> and for benefiting from spending by out-of-state super political action committees<\/a>. Vang also faced criticism in conservative media outlets over her longstanding practice of abstaining from the Pledge of Allegiance i<\/a>n council meetings.<\/p>\n Around 7:20 p.m., dozens of supporters applauded Matsui\u2019s entrance to her election night party at Sellands Cafe & Bar on Broadway. Among them were several of Sacramento\u2019s most well known faces including Mayor Kevin McCarty, former Mayor Darrell Steinberg, City Council members Phil Pluckebaum and Roger Dickinson and Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper. Matsui had previously received endorsements from many of the region\u2019s politicians, including the majority of the Sacramento City Council.<\/p>\n In her comments to the crowd, Matsui emphasized her experience is needed to push back against President Donald Trump\u2019s agenda.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve negotiated this chaos through the Trump administration, and I know how to negotiate the chaos moving forward too,\u201d Matsui said. She also referenced the \u201cnegativity\u201d of advertisements during this election cycle, though she declined to say if she felt Vang\u2019s campaign had gone over the line.<\/p>\n \u201cThe reason why that I had to get involved in trying to even use my own personal money is because the negativity and the dark money was coming and criticizing me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Matsui left the party shortly after her remarks, headed back to Washington, D.C., for an anticipated House vote on the war in Iran.<\/p>\n At her election night party, meanwhile, Vang deemed the early results as a sign that she would advance to the November general election. She celebrated alongside more than a hundred supporters who enjoyed drinks and a DJ at The Lock & Key Tapas + Bar in Midtown, at a lively joint party with Sacramento Board of Supervisors candidate Flo Cofer.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very confident that we\u2019re going to remain top two, no matter what the outcome,\u201d Vang said.<\/p>\n Vang also said the results were a sign that the region is ready for change. She bashed establishment Democrats and Republicans who don\u2019t pass the \u201ctorch.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFor far too long, the establishment has ignored our working families and so we\u2019re going to stay focused on the issue,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The mood among Vang\u2019s supporters was optimistic as they waved brightly colored fans and drank \u201cMai Times,\u201d a specialty drink consisting of light rum and pineapple juice. Many, including her high school teacher Jean Crowder, expected Vang\u2019s lead above Wooden to only grow in the coming days.<\/p>\n \u201cCongress is where I always saw her,\u201d Crowder said, recalling late nights Vang spent at the original Sacramento High School to work on her AP classes assignments and scholarship applications.<\/p>\n In a written statement Tuesday night, Wooden said the results thus far show a competitive race and his campaign would \u201cobserve the process as every legal vote is counted.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAbove all, a strong message has been sent thus far that CA-07 voters demand a focus on issues like affordability, public safety and government accountability,\u201d he said in a statement.<\/p>\n The 7th District stretches from El Dorado Hills and Placerville to the north to Lodi and Linden to the south. It also encompasses Galt, Elk Grove and several capital region neighborhoods including Campus Commons, Oak Park, south Sacramento and the city\u2019s downtown core. Proposition 50, a voter-approved initiative that redrew California\u2019s congressional boundaries to favor Democrats, eliminated West Sacramento, Lemon Hill, Florin, East Sacramento and Isleton from the district.<\/p>\n This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 8:39 PM.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n Mathew Miranda<\/a><\/p>\n The Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n Mathew Miranda is a political reporter for The Sacramento Bee\u2019s Capitol Bureau, covering how decisions in Washington, D.C., affect the lives of Californians. He is a proud son of Salvadoran immigrants and earned degrees from Chico State and UC Berkeley.\n <\/p>\n![\"Sacramento](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/SAC_6218_MaiVang_HA_260602.JPG\" "\\"SAC_6218_MaiVang_HA_260602.JPG\\"")
Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang, a candidate for the 7th Congressional District, speaks to supporter Sumayya Jawadi during her election night party at The Lock & Key in midtown Sacramento on Tuesday, June 2, 2026. HECTOR AMEZCUA hamezcua@sacbee.com <\/p>\n U.S. Rep. Doris Matsui greets Lodi Councilmember Mikey Hothi at Sellands on Broadway in Sacramento on primary election night on Tuesday, June 2, 2026. HANNAH RUHOFF hruhoff@sacbee.com <\/p>\n
U.S. Rep. Doris Matsui speaks to her supporters at Sellands on Broadway in Sacramento on primary election night on Tuesday, June 2, 2026. HANNAH RUHOFF hruhoff@sacbee.com <\/p>\n
![\"Sacramento](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/SAC_6282_FlojaneCofer_HA_260602.JPG\" "\\"SAC_6282_FlojaneCofer_HA_260602.JPG\\"")
Sacramento Supervisor candidate Flojaune Cofer is celebrated by Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang, who is a candidate for the 7th Congressional District, during their election night party at The Lock & Key in midtown Sacramento on Tuesday, June 2, 2026. HECTOR AMEZCUA hamezcua@sacbee.com <\/p>\n
\n
\n <\/a><\/p>\n
![\"Profile](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Tarini-Mehta-profile.jpg\")