ORANGE, Calif. – Republican Reps. Young Kim and Michelle Steel are feeling optimistic.
Though members of an increasingly endangered species scientifically known as California Republican, the Orange County-based lawmakers are confident their constituents will vote them into the Congress for the third time this fall.
First elected in 2020, and both of their districts remain competitive targets for the campaign arms of both parties this year — but Kim and Steel are not afraid of a fight.
“My family and I came here as immigrants, and we are now living the American dream, but it’s not the same state of California that it once was,” Kim told The Post, when asked about residents leaving the Golden State for greener pastures, citing cost of living and quality of life concerns.
“But here I am, instead of leaving, I am staying in the fight. And hopefully, in a short period of time, we will be able to bring back the hope and the Golden State that it once was, and help keep the American dream for the future generation,” she continued.
Kim will take on retired fire captain Joe Kerr this November, while Steel faces off with army veteran and attorney Derek Tran.
They won their districts in 2022 with 57% and 52% of the vote, respectively.
Steel told The Post she believes her district’s rising immigrant population and the values they bring to their communities will be a benefit to her campaign.
“I still see the hope, and we have a lot of immigrants coming in, especially Asian American immigrants in my district. We have almost 37% Asian American first generations, and they are here and they work really hard and they can see it. Something has to be changed. And it is eventually it is getting changed,” Steel said.
Both women noted the economy as a top issue for Californians, as much of the state’s residents face a high state tax burden, compounded with a high cost of living.
Both voted against the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which earned them praise for investments and criticism for their high price tag.
Steel’s campaign signs simply read: “Stop inflation, Lower taxes.”
“I’m on the Ways and Means Committee right now and we see a lot of taxes are going to be expiring from 2017,” Steel said, noting the Trump-era tax reforms that expire in 2025.
“So we’re working on that. How are we going to keep that corporate tax at 21%, when the Biden administration wants to raise it to 28%?”
“I’ve worked on the Inflation Prevention Act, where we’re asking Congress not to pass any bills that will increase inflation until the year-over-year inflation rate drops below 4.5%. We shouldn’t be passing any bills that will add to more of that burden,” Kim added.
When it comes to winning the races, Kim and Steel highlighted their ground game efforts, particulary since all of Orange County’s congressional districts went for Biden in 2020.
Both campaigns have a full apparatus of interns and volunteers, who are logging hours phone banking at their campaign offices and canvassing under the Southern California sun.
However, the campaigns have not been without criticism — issues like abortion, IVF, and Project 2025 have been at the center of Democratic messaging, and become a thorn in the side of GOP candidates in tough races across the country.
But Kim argues at least one of those issues is merely a distraction.
“I think the media is the only one that is talking about Project 2025,” Kim said. “We are not talking about that. My constituents don’t talk about this. So the very polarized news that is going on in our country is hyped up,” she concluded.
A press release from the DCCC in July declared: “Young Kim and Donald Trump’s Project 2025 is an extreme manifesto” with “far-reaching consequences for California.”
Meanwhile, an advertisement from Democratic advocacy group House Majority Forward hit the Orange County airwaves claiming that Steel “tried to ban abortion in California.”
Speaking to The Post, Steel clarified her position on this thorny policy issue, and another that has come into public view this cycle: in-vitro fertilization.
“I’ve always been saying that you know what? Only there are three exceptions: incest, rape, and a mother’s health. And other than that, I’m pro-life,” Steel said.
“And then that IVF came in. I went through IVF, it took me six years to have two beautiful children. So I’m so grateful for that. So we should not ban IVF, we really need it. That’s the way I built my family. So everybody knows where I’m standing for the abortion issue,” she added.
Cook Political Report ranks Steel’s race as “Lean Republican” and Kim’s race as “Likely Republican.”
As of June 30, these two California incumbents have more money in the bank than their opponents: Kim has $3.6 million on hand compared with Kerr’s roughly $470,000, while Steel has $3.8 million to Tran’s $1.15 million.
