Republican claims victory in special House vote in California

LOS ANGELES — A former Navy combat pilot claimed victory Wednesday in the fight for an open U.S. House seat north of Los Angeles, a win that would mark the first time in over two decades that a Republican captured a Democratic-held congressional district in California.

“I’m ready to go to work,” Republican Mike Garcia said. His Democratic rival, Christy Smith, congratulated Garcia, calling him the “likely victor.”

However, she said she expected to win in November, when the two meet again in a rematch for the full House term that begins in January. “This is only one step in this process,” she said.

The contest took on outsized importance as the only competitive House race in the country in the midst of the coronavirus crisis.