The Abridged version:
- Former state Sen. Richard Pan announced his run for Congress, contesting the seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Kevin Kiley, a Rocklin Republican.
- Rep. Ami Bera, a fellow Democrat, is likely to run for the seat as well, if California passes its redistricting measure on Nov. 4.
- The 3rd District maps would be skewed in favor of the Democrats if Proposition 50 passes.
Two Sacramento-area Democrats, both doctors-turned-politicians, are looking to flip the 3rd Congressional District seat currently held by Republican Rep. Kevin Kiley.
Democrat Dr. Richard Pan announced on Tuesday that he intends to run for the seat. Pan previously represented the Sacramento region in the state Legislature, with stints in the Assembly and Senate before term limits forced him out in 2022. He made a run for Sacramento mayor last year, finishing in third place out of four candidates.
Fellow Democrat Rep. Ami Bera is also likely to enter the race. Bera, who is also a doctor, was Sacramento County’s chief medical officer before his election to Congress in 2013.
Bera is leaning toward running for the 3rd District seat — which would include parts of his current district — if the redistricting effort passes, according to a representative from his office. Bera now represents Congressional District 6, which is entirely in Sacramento County and includes Rancho Cordova, Citrus Heights, Rio Linda, Arden-Arcade, North Highlands and most of Fair Oaks.
Pan’s campaign announcement centered on challenging the federal government’s health policies.
“I’m running for Congress to hold Donald Trump and RFK Jr. accountable,” Pan told Abridged.
“I’m a pediatrician. I’ve spent my whole career trying to help children and their families stay healthy,” Pan added.
During Pan’s time in the state Legislature, he earned a reputation for fighting against what he described as “anti-vaccine extremists.” He spearheaded laws that ban personal belief exemptions for vaccines, which culminated in a protester throwing blood at him on the Senate floor in 2019.
For more recent issues, Pan voiced deep frustrations with the federal government’s cuts to Medicaid and increases to health insurance costs.
“There’s a 30-year high in measles cases and you see our federal government is not doing anything about that,” Pan said. “That’s unacceptable.”
The 3rd District seat is poised to see some of the most dramatic changes under Proposition 50, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s measure to redistrict California’s congressional seats to make them more Democrat leaning.
The seat currently encompasses much of Placer and El Dorado counties and stretches down through rural areas along the eastern border of the state. Redistricting would make the 3rd District map much more favorable to Democrats by pulling in more voters from Sacramento’s suburbs.
Kiley, who has held the seat since 2022, has been vocal about his opposition to Proposition 50. He introduced legislation earlier this year that would ban mid-decade redistricting efforts across the country.
Pan said he plans to run for the 3rd District seat regardless of the redistricting efforts.
Fellow Democrat Rep. Ami Bera is also likely to enter the race. Bera, who is also a doctor, was Sacramento County’s chief medical officer before his election to Congress in 2013.
Bera is leaning toward running for the 3rd District seat, if the redistricting effort passes, according to a representative from his office. Bera now represents Congressional District 6, which is entirely in Sacramento County and includes Rancho Cordova, Citrus Heights, Rio Linda, Arden-Arcade, North Highlands and most of Fair Oaks.
When asked about the possible challenges of two Democrats and two doctors vying for the same seat, Pan declined to comment directly on the competition.
“Well, I’ll navigate that when the time comes, when Prop. 50 passes,” Pan said.
Felicia Alvarez is a reporter at Abridged covering accountability. She’s called Sacramento home since 2015 and has reported on government, health care and breaking news topics for both local and national news outlets.