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California

Mike McGuire Wins Redrawn CA-01 Seat

McGuire's victory flips the newly redistricted Northern California seat from Republican to Democratic control, as local races in Sonoma County remain close.

Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Elections

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of a government building silhouette against rolling hills, in navy and cream with a muted red accent, evoking the redrawn Northern California district.
Democrat Mike McGuire won California's newly redrawn 1st Congressional District on election night, flipping the seat from Republican control, while Sonoma County races remain uncalled. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Democrat Mike McGuire won the newly redistricted CA-01 seat, which includes Sonoma and Yuba counties, flipping it from Republican to Democrat. Results from local Sonoma County races were still being tallied into Wednesday morning, with several contests close or uncalled.

Why it matters

The flip reflects how California's redrawn congressional map reshapes representation in the north state. Local races remain open because a large volume of ballots, including a City Hall drop box, had not yet been counted.

Mathew Lopez leads the Healdsburg 2nd District race 301 to 185, but only 594 of 1,640 issued ballots were counted at press time. Results remain provisional until the election is certified on December 3, 2026.

The players

Mike McGuire

A Democratic politician and former California state senator who won the redrawn CA-01 congressional seat.

Melanie Bagby

A candidate in the contested Sonoma County 4th District supervisor race, holding a slight lead at press time.

Tom Schwedhelm

A candidate trailing Melanie Bagby in the Sonoma County 4th District supervisor race.

The details

McGuire's win in CA-01 was reported on election night, with results continuing to update into Wednesday morning. In Sonoma County, Chris Herrod ran unopposed in the 4th District, while Bagby held a slight lead over Schwedhelm in the contested supervisor race. Alex Wood withdrew from the Healdsburg race in September and still received 53 votes.

Timeline

  1. Tuesday, November 3, 2026: Election night results began reporting.

  2. Wednesday, November 4, 2026: Local races remained uncalled at press time.

  3. September 2026: Alex Wood withdrew from the Healdsburg race.

  4. December 3, 2026: Deadline for certifying the election.

Political Context

The result follows California's post-2020 redistricting, which redrew district boundaries and reshaped which communities are grouped together. No further redistricting is expected until after the 2030 census.

Residents in the redrawn CA-01 district will be represented by the newly elected Democrat under the new boundaries. Voters in close local races should expect final outcomes only after remaining ballots are counted and certified.

The takeaway

Close local races can take days or weeks to resolve as late-counted ballots are processed. Check certified results from county registrars before drawing conclusions about final outcomes.

What happens next

Results will be updated at least twice per week until the election is certified on December 3, 2026, and Mathew Lopez is likely to replace Evelyn Mitchell on the Healdsburg City Council pending final tallies.

Further reading

Track more results in our California Elections coverage.

Source note: This article includes information reported by Healdsburg Tribune.

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