Redwood Alumni Andrew Janz runs for Congress

By: Colin Watamura & Johan Satorre, Edited by: Annabelle Williamson

The race for California’s 22nd congressional district is more competitive than it has been for almost 15 years. Andrew Janz, the Democratic nominee, is running a tight race against four-term incumbent and Senior Republican Member of the House, Devin Nunes, for control of the seat.

Janz, a Central Valley native, was raised in Visalia by an immigrant family and graduated from Redwood High School with the class of 2002. He attended CSU Stanislaus for college and now serves as a Deputy District Attorney for Fresno County.

Janz announced his candidacy in April of 2017. As a debut candidate against a Republican powerhouse, many have been skeptical about Janz’s ability to flip the seat in November. Not only has the seat in question been held by the same Republican since 2003, but it has also been traditionally controlled by the Republican party.

California’s 22nd district, which encompasses most of eastern Fresno as well as all of Clovis, Tulare, and Visalia, has historically been a Republican stronghold in a very blue state. Since its creation in 1943, the district has only seated three Democrats, the most recent of which left office in January of 2003. However, despite Nunes’ position being commonly considered to be a “safe seat,” Janz is confident in the collective ability of his team and supporters to flip the seat.

“There is no real ‘safe seat’ in America these days,”

Andrew Janz

“There is no real ‘safe seat’ in America these days,” Janz told the Gigantea. “We’ve seen races all across the country, especially in the last couple of years, where political pundits have described seats as ‘safe’ but then having first term candidates beating out long time incumbents or entrenched parties.”

Since the 2016 election, the Democratic party has pulled off a series of upsets against favored Republican opponents, notably in races such as Doug Jones in Alabama, who overtook Republican Roy Moore for the Senate Seat, and Lauren Arthur who overtook Republican state representative Kevin Corlew in Missouri. More than 40 such state legislative flips have occurred in the U.S. by Democrats since November of 2016, and though the margin of victory by which Nunes has won in his previous races has some raising an eyebrow at Janz’s ability to flip this particular seat, Janz believes the polls tell a different story.

“Our race and campaign is within the margin of error of Devin Nunes.”

Andrew Janz

“If you look at the polling [that has been] done, not just by our campaign, but by independent groups, too, the race is clearly neck and neck. Our race and campaign is within the margin of error of Devin Nunes. I always tell my supporters, ‘The only poll that matters is the one on November 6th,’” he explains. Janz’s campaign has made large strides since the June Primary, when Janz amassed just under 32% of total votes while Nunes went home with just over 58%. Recent polling, however, has put Janz within 5% of Nunes.

This year’s election is unique in that it is the first race since his entrance into office in 2013 that Nunes has had a viable opponent, and Janz knows it: “Having lived here for all of my life, I’ve never seen the level of energy and excitement behind any political campaign than what we see going on in this race right now. It’s something unique and it’s something that is humbling at the same time”

Janz’s campaign trail, however, has not been an easy one. As a first-time candidate, the Visalia-raised Democrat has had to both establish and spread a clear campaign that has since come under fire for relying on what some have referred to as a reliance on anti-Trump and Not Nunes rhetoric while sacrificing substance in the process. Janz feels this is because his message has been lost in the sensationalization of the race, and that his original message has been the same since day one.

“This race is entirely about retaking the Central Valley,” Janz maintained. “We’ve been talking from the very beginning about issues that people care about here in the Central Valley [such as]: water, infrastructure, immigration reform, securing our healthcare system, social security, Medicare, Medicaid, but the big picture is taking back the Valley; making sure that we have federal investment here and to make sure that we can continue to be the breadbasket of the world.”

“Our current elected representatives have failed us. They have gone to Washington and they’ve been bought out by special interest groups like corporations.”

Andrew Janz

Janz has also taken additional action to establish himself against his opponents, including a refusal to accept corporate money for his campaign. “Our current elected representatives have failed us. They have gone to Washington and they’ve been bought out by special interest groups like corporations. So, it was very important for me, from the outset of this election, to make sure that the campaign wasn’t going to take any corporate money,” he explained.

Janz further elaborated that he feels the best way for constituents to clearly see where their representatives stand is through a debate between the candidates. “I’ve been calling, from day one, for a debate with my opponent. That way, the voters of the district can see where we stand on the issues,” says Janz. As of the date of publication, Nunes has declined a debate.

Janz also talked to the Gigantea about some key points of action he plans to take given a flip in November. As the Democratic frontrunner for a seat representing two of the least educated cities in the United States, education is seated high on his list of priorities.

“We used to take education seriously when were going at it with the Russians in the Cold War,” said Janz. “We wanted to make sure they weren’t out pacing us in respect to math, science, and technology. So, we put a lot of state and local money into making sure that our kids got a good, decent education so that we could compete on a global scale. We’ve moved away from that, so I want to make sure that congress and the federal government work in tandem with state and local governments to make sure that we bring back the ideals that really put us front and center on the global stage 30 years ago.”

Specifically, Janz believes that adjusting the degree of federal participation and ensuring equal access to the same type of education for all students will set the precedent for the future of policy-making in education, creating the optimal learning environment for all students.

Janz’s student-related policy would also expand to reach those in outlets of higher education seeking to avoid the consequences of student debt. As of 2018, the total student loan debt within the United States amounted to 1.5 trillion dollars, with the average student in the class of 2016 owing more than $37,000 in student loan debt, and these figures appear to be growing.

Referring to student loans as “a tax on the younger generation,” Janz explained that he “[wants] to make sure that, at the federal level, we continue to support loan forgiveness programs, especially for students that come from underserved communities and students that enter into public service for our country so that if you commit to public service, the government will help you to forgive those loans.” Loan forgiveness programs would benefit the economy by allowing individuals to contribute to the economy as consumers rather than being in debt, he told the Gigantea.

An increasing number of the American population have become frustrated with the current political system and its inability to make substantial progress. Young people have grown increasingly skeptical about the government’s ability to perform its duties. Public distrust in the government is near a historic low, with only 18% of Americans feeling confident in their representatives.

“I was disillusioned with the system. That’s part of the reason why I got involved in this race … For me, it was important because we have as a sitting member of congress …somebody who’s part of that corruption.”

Andrew Janz

When asked about the issue, and what he would tell those young folks, Janz replied, “I would tell them that I was one of them; I was disillusioned with the system. That’s part of the reason why I got involved in this race … For me, it was important because we have as a sitting member of congress …somebody who’s part of that corruption. Somebody who takes millions of dollars from special interest groups and goes to Washington and votes against our interests here in the Central Valley.”

Janz continues, “I’ve always been raised by my parents a certain way. They taught me that when I’m in a position of power or where I can make a difference, it’s my responsibility to step up and try to be a positive change; that’s why I got into this race.”

Janz wanted to make clear that his campaign is more than just about partisan politics, it is about restoring accountability to the 22nd district. He emphasises, “I want to make sure that people in valley know that I would be working for them and not their company, or their political action committee.“

Janz continues saying, “I want to make sure that the millenials and 18 and 25 year old’s understand what’s at stake. They have the most to lose in this election because we are talking about not only the future of our country, we are talking about the future of the planet as well.

So, we want to make sure that they understand that and that they know that every single vote matters.”

He finishes, “I’m going to continue doing things like be on college campuses, visiting high schools, and trying to excite and energize a group of voters that traditionally have not shown up. I want to make sure they understand that I’m here to fight for them.”

The rapidly approaching midterm elections, regardless of their outcomes, are looking to be some of the most consequential in recent history.

The Gigantea has reached out to the Nunes Campaign. As of the date of publication, we have yet to schedule an interview.

Tags: andrew janz, ca22, devin nunes, visalia ca