First-term Democratic Rep. Josh Harder is projected to defend his seat from Ted Howze in California's 10th Congressional District

• Democratic Rep. Josh Harder is projected to win against Republican Ted Howze in California's 10th Congressional District, according to Decision Desk HQ
• The district is in central California, in the northern San Joaquin Valley area.
• Harder had $3.8 million in cash on hand heading into the final weeks of the race — 57 times more than Howze with just $67,244.
• See the live coverage and full results from all US House elections.

First-term Rep. Josh Harder is projected to defend his seat from Republican Ted Howze in California's 10th Congressional District, according to Decision Desk HQ.

The candidates

Harder, the former vice president of a venture-capital firm, was elected in 2018 after defeating former three-term incumbent, Jeff Denham. He currently sits on the House Committee on Agriculture and the House Committee on Education and Labor.

Howze, Harder's challenger, previously ran to represent the 10th District but did not make it past the Republican primary. He is a veterinarian, small-business owner, and the former planning commissioner of the city of Turlock. His campaign platform was centered on lowering the cost of medications, funding the police, and supporting 2nd Amendment rights.

Howze came under scrutiny earlier this year when Politico exposed dozens of posts on his Facebook and Twitter accounts expressing bigotry against Muslims, demeaning gun-violence survivors, and spreading conspiracy theories. Howze maintained that he himself did not make the posts and claimed others who had access to his account had posted the messages.

In the wake of the controversy, the campaign arm of House Republicans pulled Howze out of their Young Guns program, and both the chair of the California Republican Party and House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the highest-ranking House Republican, rescinded their endorsements of Howze.

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The district

California's 10th Congressional District is in the center of the state, in the northern part of the San Joaquin Valley. The district is home to Stanislaus County and a portion of San Joaquin County as well. In 2016, residents of the district voted for Hillary Clinton by 3 points over Donald Trump, in a 49-46% split.

The money race

According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Harder raised more than $6.9 million, spent $3.1 million, and had $3.8 million in cash on hand as of October 14, while Howze raised $1.3 million, spent $1.6 million, and had around $67,000 in cash on hand as of October 14.

What experts said

The race between Harder and Howze was rated as "likely Democratic" by The Cook Political Report and "safe Democratic" according to Inside Elections and Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics.