Race for Congressional District 47 in Orange County heats up

ORANGE COUNTY, Calif. (KABC) -- The race for California Congressional District 47 between incumbent Katie Porter and business owner Scott Baugh is heating up.

Both are caught in a tight race to see who will represent residents living in parts of Orange County.

"I've had an amazing time getting to know hundreds of thousands of new voters, showing them through my actions that I will listen to them and fight for them in Washington," said Porter.

Due to redistricting, the candidates would represent communities along the coast from Seal Beach to Laguna Beach as well as Costa Mesa and Irvine.

"Our campaign is strong," said Baugh. "We have hundreds of volunteers. We're walking thousands of doors. We're making thousands of phone calls."

Porter said she wants to continue to fight for her constituents and said inflation plus the rising cost of living is impacting every one.

"I'm in the grocery stores, I'm at the gas pumps, and I feel it too," she said. "What I did in Congress was to show that about half of every extra dollar that we are paying this year is going to line the pockets of the biggest corporations in the world. Corporate profits are at 70-year record high."

However, Baugh said voters want change.

He believes Porter has hurt the middle class by supporting bills that spend too much money and don't allow production to take place.

"She's out of touch and she needs to be replaced," Baugh said. "The Democrats address it by spending more and taxing more. They call it the Inflation Reduction Act, but only in Washington D.C. would you have a spending and tax problem and solve it with a spending and tax solution."

While District 47 is equally split between Republicans and Democrats, Baugh and Porter each believe they have momentum on their side heading into Election Day.

"Republicans have a lot more enthusiasm," Baugh said. "A lot of the Independents are leaning towards the Republican view of life, the American way of life. They don't want socialism in this country, and I think the coast of Orange County rejects socialism in this country. They're more conservative and they'll vote for me on Election Day."

Porter thinks otherwise.

"I don't think Orange County is red or blue," she said. "I think Orange County shared some common values about wanting to make sure they can take care of their family, valuing safe communities, wanting to make sure that someone's watching out for their tax dollars and standing up to stopping government waste. That's exactly what I've done in my time in Congress and that's what I promise to continue doing."

Both candidates agree the race for District 47 will be a close one so they encourage anyone in the district who has not voted yet to head to the polls on Tuesday and to vote for who best represents them.