A day after Democrat Katie Porter won Orange County’s 45th Congressional seat, flipping the longtime GOP district blue, she announced her first undertaking in Washington D.C. – passing a bill to overhaul campaign finance laws and protect voting rights.
Surrounded by cheering supporters at her Irvine campaign headquarters on Friday afternoon, Porter said that before she attempts to tackle her other campaign promises – fighting for a “Medicare for all” health care system and imposing new restrictions on gun purchases – she’ll try to reduce the influence of money in politics.
“I think until we pass campaign finance reform, doing anything on health care is going to be a big challenge,” said Porter, a UC Irvine law professor.
The Associated Press called the contest for Porter on Thursday. Her opponent, two-term GOP Rep. Mimi Walters, conceded on Friday morning. Porter will take office Jan. 3 as one of at least 35 new Democrats who won Republican-held districts this election and helped Democrats take control of the House.
Campaign finance has been a theme for Porter. Her campaign did not accept donations from corporate political action committees, and she accused pharmaceutical companies of using campaign money to perpetuate a system in which they can charge high drug prices. Walters’ campaign received $1.4 million in donations directly from corporate PACs, while Porter accepted no money directly from such committees, though it did accept $166,000 indirectly from such groups, according to a Voice of OC analysis.
Porter said she helped craft H.R.1, the first bill the new Democratic House of Representative will try to pass. The legislation is expected to require increased disclosure of outside money in elections, compel presidential candidates to make public their tax returns, and strengthen the Voting Rights Act, portions of which were struck down by a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
The bill also seeks to undo the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, which legalized unlimited campaign spending for corporations. Conservative groups have alleged in recent days that such a change would be unconstitutional.
On Friday, Porter also announced that she’ll back Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) to become House Speaker, “assuming there are no other alternatives.” She commended Pelosi for her role in passing Obamacare and said she likes the idea for voting for a fellow Californian.
“She understands our state,” Porter said.
Porter also revealed that she was on an airplane without cell service when the AP projected the contest in her favor. She learned the news when she landed and saw “I had 167 text messages.”
Porter is the third Democrat to flip a Republican-held House seat in Orange County this cycle and the fifth to do so statewide. Two other congressional races in the state, including the 39th, which touches northern Orange County, remained too close to call on Friday afternoon.
