Meet the candidates in the South Valley Congressional race that could determine House majority

With less than two weeks until the end of voting, a tight political fight is underway in the South Valley. Republican David Valadao and Democrat Rudy Salas are facing off for a second time for a seat in the House.

"A lot of the things that I've done is to improve people's lives," Salas said. "And so, that's what I want to do in Congress at a much bigger scale."

"My first concern is making sure that the folks here in the Central Valley have a strong voice for them," Valadao said.

Valadao is from Hanford and has served in Congress for five terms, focusing on water, the Farm Bill, and public safety. In a new term, he says he wants to tackle the economy and border.

"We have to have a process that works for both the employers on this side of the border and the employees that want to come across," Valadao said.

Salas is from Bakersfield, where he served on the City Council and then the State Assembly for 10 years.

He wants to take that work to Washington.

"We need to fix our aging water pipes," Salas said.

"We need to make sure that we're still providing educational opportunities for each of our kids. We need to make sure that we're bringing down the price of medicine."

The race is a rematch of 2022 when just 3,000 votes separated Valadao and Salas.

The matchup has national significance as House Republicans fight to keep their narrow majority.

"Now, Rudy's running again. But, he can't outrun his record," one campaign ad states.

"Asked point blank on TV if he supports a national abortion ban, Valadao went all-in," another ad states.

Democrats need a net gain of just four seats to win the House, and the South Valley could help them.

President Biden won the 22nd District by nearly 13 percent in 2020.

Just two years earlier, a Democrat held the seat for one term in an upset over Valadao.

Federal filings reveal Salas had nearly $2 million in cash at the end of September compared to Valadao's $1.4 million.

Polls compiled by ABC's FiveThirtyEight show a razor-thin margin with just days to go.

"We're sprinting every single day to make sure that we're getting every eligible voter to turn in their vote-by-mail ballot," Salas said.

"The response we're getting from our campaign shows that we're getting a lot of support, and we're expected, and we're feeling pretty good about the race overall," Valadao said.

"So, you are feeling comfortable as we head into these final few weeks here?" Action News asked.

"I would never say comfortable," Valadao said. "We're feeling pretty good."

Valadao is one of only two Republican lawmakers up for re-election who voted to impeach former President Trump in 2021.

Valadao says if Trump wins a second term, the two would "have to find areas where we work together."

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