California’s special election for the 25th Congressional district has become a nationally watched contest, and the seat’s previous representative is getting involved. The 25th district was previously represented by Democrat Katie Hill, who flipped the seat from red to blue in the 2018 “blue wave” midterm elections. Hill was forced to resign less than a year later in light of a sex scandal involving an inappropriate relationship with a staffer.
Hoping to succeed the disgraced congresswoman is Assemblywoman Christy Smith (D), but the friend of Hill’s faces a steep challenge from Republican Mike Garcia. After Hill’s nationalized scandal, Cook Political Report rates the seat as a toss-up.
With the special election polling tight, and while both Republicans and Democrats put boots on the ground in the district, Katie Hill is intervening in the fight for the seat that she previously held. Hill released an ad using fear mongering, encouraging her former constituents to “vote like their lives depend on it:”
Hill’s PAC, HER Time PAC, is also investing $200,000 into the special election to help Smith.
NEW: Ex-Rep Katie Hill’s new PAC is dropping $200K into the #CA25 special to fill her old seat
— Ally Mutnick (@allymutnick) April 30, 2020
She cut a direct-to-camera TV ad urging voters to mail in ballots
"I do not want my legacy to be flipping a seat, and then having it immediately flip back”https://t.co/e3H3MZNZ0B
In what may have been her most tone deaf moment yet, Hill lamented that she did not want the seat flipping to GOP control to be her legacy:
"I do not want my legacy to be flipping a seat, and then having it immediately flip back," Hill said, per Politico.
Hill's bizarre message may not be so well received, just six months after she disgraced the 25th district. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) was reportedly unaware of Hill's intent to be involved, though coordination between Hill's PAC and the Democrats' congressional campaign arm would violate federal election law:
Just to underscore how off message this ad is, the DCCC didn’t get a heads up that Hill was running this ad beforehand — per a source familiar with the situation.
— Josh Kraushaar (@HotlineJosh) May 1, 2020
Source says the ad will only help Republicans. Hill deeply unpopular in the district since the scandal. https://t.co/P2icQsZX2j
A victory in California’s 25th district would be a notable win for the GOP. The special election is set for May 12.