Skip to content

2026 midterms · Candidate

Republican · Candidate · U.S. House, California’s 22nd District · Incumbent

Portrait of David Valadao, rendered as a two-tone print
Official portrait
0.2%
of statements contain a personal attack

In the bottom tenth of Republican House incumbents (their average is 2.4%; Valadao ranks 205th of 221, where 1st is the highest rate), from 9,903 statements.

An AI model reads everything Valadao publishes in office (posts, press releases, newsletters, floor speeches) and marks whether each attacks a person’s character, integrity or loyalty; the rate is the share marked.

What Valadao says

0.2% of Valadao’s statements contain a personal attack, in the bottom tenth of Republican House incumbents. Their average is 2.4%.

An AI model reads everything Valadao publishes in office and marks five kinds of statement; the rate is the share of statements with each label. The thin grey bar is the average of the 221 Republican House incumbents with 50 or more statements, and the rank places Valadao among them (1st is the highest rate). A rate describes what was said, not whether it was right.

How often does Valadao make each kind of statement?

Share of statements: Valadao (thick bar) against the Republican House incumbents average (thin grey bar)

0%70%
Valadao
Average
Rank
Personal attacks
0.2%
2.4%
205th of 221
Policy criticism
14%
18%
163rd of 221
Policy discussion
57%
61%
162nd of 221
Bipartisanship
11%
5.4%
15th of 221
Credit claiming
29%
22%
48th of 221
Show the data
Valadao’s share of statements of each kind, against the Republican House incumbents average: Personal attacks 0.2%, Policy criticism 14%, Policy discussion 57%, Bipartisanship 11%, Credit claiming 29%.
RowValadaoAverage
Personal attacks0.2%2.4%
Policy criticism14%18%
Policy discussion57%61%
Bipartisanship11%5.4%
Credit claiming29%22%
9,903

statements classified

From everything they publish in office: posts, press releases, newsletters and floor speeches.

This compares Valadao with other candidates. Valadao’s official profile compares Valadao with fellow office-holders and has every statement, vote and bill.

The five kinds of statement

Personal attacks. Overtly questions a named person’s character, integrity or loyalty, or calls them names. Criticising a record or a policy does not count.

Policy criticism. Objects to a specific policy, law or court ruling with fact-based arguments, without personal attacks or emotional appeals.

Policy discussion. Discusses a specific public policy or policy area (health care, taxes, defense, …).

Bipartisanship. Emphasises working across the aisle, compromise or common ground between the parties.

Credit claiming. Claims credit for passing legislation, securing funding or grants, or other accomplishments in office.

Back to topNext: Money

Money

Valadao reports $6.3M raised and $1.7M cash on hand. By money raised, 1st of the two candidates on this race’s list with FEC figures.

Totals the campaign reports to the Federal Election Commission for the 2026 cycle, as filed.

Raised

$6.3M

Spent

$4.7M

Cash on hand

$1.7M

Where has Valadao’s money come from?

Receipts by source, as reported to the FEC

Individuals: $2.2M (48.9%)Individuals $2.2MPACs: $2.3M (50.7%)PACs $2.3MParty committees: $20.0K (0.4%)
Show the data
Valadao’s receipts by source: Individuals $2.2M, PACs $2.3M, Party committees $20.0K, Own money $0, Candidate loans $0.
PartValue
Individuals$2.2M
PACs$2.3M
Party committees$20.0K
Own money$0
Candidate loans$0
Notes
Sources are the FEC’s categories; what is left (transfers, refunds, other receipts) is not drawn. The race page compares every candidate in the race.

Back to topNext: Online

Online

Engagement is what X reports for each collected post, averaged; it measures reach, not support.

No engagement figures are on file for this account.

Back to topNext: The race

The race

California 22nd District: Valadao advanced from the primary. Primary Jun 2, 2026 (top-two primary). General election Nov 3, 2026.

Rated toss-up. Cook Political Report ratings, entered by the lab (last updated by the lab on Jun 24, 2026); a forecaster’s judgement about the general election, not the lab’s.

Who else is on the list?

Candidates recorded as advancing from the primary

The race page compares every candidate’s statements and money · every race in California

Back to topNext: Methods and sources

Methods and sources

The headline. Each candidate’s headline is chosen by one rule for everyone. The peer group is the ranked candidates (50 or more statements) of the same party, for the same office and measured on the same record, widened to both parties when it has fewer than 10. Each kind of statement is scored by how far the candidate sits from the middle of the group (|percentile − 0.5|, ties counting half); the farthest leads if it is outside the middle half (above 0.25), scores within 0.03 tie and fall to a fixed order, and a high rate backed by fewer than 10 labelled statements cannot lead. Otherwise the headline is a plain count.

The statements. As an incumbent member of Congress, this candidate is measured on everything the lab collects from them in office: posts on X, press releases, newsletters and floor speeches. An AI model marks each statement for five kinds of statement; rates are shown from 10 statements and ranked from 50.

The race. Candidates come from FEC filings (House and Senate), the lab’s list of sitting members of Congress, and the lab’s list of candidates for governor. The lab records each primary’s result once it is official. House districts follow FEC filings; a sitting member is placed in the race for the seat they hold now.

Identifiers. FEC candidate id H2CA20094 (FEC record). Bioguide id V000129. First FEC filing Jul 21, 2011.

Money and reach. Campaign money is as reported to the FEC. Followers, likes and views are what X reports for the posts the lab collected.

About the data →

Back to top