It’s a race that pits a veteran Tri-Counties congressman against a military veteran making his first bid for a major political office.
Incumbent Democrat Salud Carbajal faces independent challenger Bob Smith for the 24th District congressional seat. The district includes all of Santa Barbara County and parts of Ventura and San Luis Obispo Counties, with about 760,000 residents.
Carbajal is from an immigrant family. He grew up in Ventura County, graduated from UC Santa Barbara, and served eight years in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves. In 2004, he was elected to the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors. In 2014, he was elected to Congress. He’s now seeking a sixth term.
Why is Carbajal seeking re-election?
"I have a proven track record of delivering investments and legislation to improve the lives of Central Coast residents," he responded. "I want to continue to address the affordability and cost of living crisis so many families are struggling with right now when it comes to health care, groceries, gas, housing, and utilities. I want to make sure we put a stop to the Iran War. I want to stop the illegal tariffs that are hurting our businesses. I want to reform ICE, and stop the terror and separation of families."
Carbajal spoke about his top priorities if re-elected:
"Stopping the affordability crisis so many families are facing right now," said Carbajal. "Whether it's healthcare, groceries, housing, gas prices, making sure that we restore the Affordable Care Act tax credits so people losing their health care to the 'Big Ugly Bill' that Republicans and Trump passed don't continue to lose their insurance. And, to continue to stop ICE from their terror in our communities."
Carbajal's opponent, Bob Smith, served in the U.S. Navy for more than a quarter of a century, including more than two and a half years in military deployments. The Carpinteria man received degrees from Old Dominion University and the Naval Postgraduate School. He ran in the June primary as a Republican, but in September changed his official status to “No Party Preference.” It was too late to change the ballot, so he’s still listed as a Republican.
Smith talked about why he’s running for the seat.
"I served 26 years of active duty in the United States Navy. I found a profound sense of purpose in serving the country. As I came out, I had extra time in my life, working a normal 40-hour job, which you don't do in the military. I looked at what kinds of things I could do to serve my community. I really did not want to run for office. That wasn't something I had on my bingo card. But I saw we didn't have great candidates running, and I feel there's a lack of leadership here. I think there's a lot we can do on the Central Coast with good leadership. We are paying the highest taxes in the country for some of the worst outcomes."
Smith outlined his priorities if elected.
"Affordability is the big one. The cost of living is killing everyone here," said Smith.
"The two biggest drivers of that are overregulation and energy costs. I've got to figure out ways that we can creatively work with California to solve some of these issues, because California is part of the problem, with overregulation and energy costs. Housing is obviously an issue. I think we should look at that as a regional construct as well as a town-by-town construct. Vandenberg Space Force Base put together a plan over ten years of areas of the base they could portion out for housing. Somehow we have never acted on that. Only 35% of our kids are graduating from our schools that can read and do math. Santa Barbara County is number two in California in poverty."
Carbajal said he believes he stands out from Smith.
"I have a proven track record of delivering investments and moving legislation forward that's increased the quality of life for residents," said Carbajal. "The experience I have and the proven track record is what sets me apart."
Smith said he believes he stands apart from Carbajal.
"I'm a disruptor, not a career politician," said Smith. "I don't have a political career to protect. I don't have a political party to protect. I can go in and immediately make decisions and be a disruptor for the things we need for our district."
