Sam Liccardo defeated fellow Democrat Evan Low in the race for California’s 16th Congressional District that The Associated Press called Wednesday night. The seat was previously held by Anna Eshoo, who announced her retirement after being a House Representative for multiple California districts since 1993. Though there’s currently only 81% reporting, Liccardo leads by over 17 percent of the vote (159,298 votes to 112,640 votes).

California’s 16th Congressional District includes Foothill College as well as the rest of the South Bay, Mid-Peninsula, and coastal San Mateo county.

Low, notably, was endorsed by both California Governor Gavin Newsom and the Democratic Nominee for President Kamala Harris, yet the district’s voting heavily swayed in the direction of his opponent. Low conceded Wednesday night, congratulating Liccardo via a post on X. 

This marks the end of a contentious blue battle between Liccardo, the former Mayor of San Jose, and Low, a Member of the California State Assembly serving the 26th Assembly District. The contest was one of the most expensive all Democrat battles in the country, also including a dramatic recount after there was an unprecedented tie for 2nd place between Evan Low and fellow nominee Joe Simitian.

The tie prompted a possible three-way race to be on the ballot come November, but Jonathan Padilla, a donor to Liccardo and a former staffer during his Mayorship, called for a recount to break the deadlock. Although Padilla is no longer attached to Liccardo, the former connection called into question the motives behind the request. The appeal was ultimately honored, and manual recount ended with Low defeating Simitian by 5 votes and setting up a traditional two person ballot.

Liccardo out-raised Low by almost 2 million dollars, and enjoyed financial backing from billionaire and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Liccardo is expected to be sworn into office on January 3rd, 2025.