Josh Harder

For the American politician in South Carolina, see Josh Haeder. For the American baseball player, see Josh Hader.

Josh Harder
File:Josh Harder, official portrait, 116th Congress.jpg
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2019
Preceded by	Jeff Denham
Constituency	10th district (2019–2023) 9th district (2023–present)
Personal details
Born	Joshua Keck Harder (1986-08-01) August 1, 1986 Turlock, California, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Pamela Sud (m. 2018)
Children	1
Residence	Tracy, California, U.S.
Education	Stanford University (BA) Harvard University (MBA, MPP)
Website	House website

Joshua Keck Harder (born August 1, 1986) is an American politician and venture capital investor who has served as the U.S. representative from California's 9th congressional district since 2019 (known as the 10th congressional district until 2023). A member of the Democratic Party, he defeated Republican incumbent Jeff Denham in the 2018 election by five points. In 2020, he was reelected by a significantly larger margin than in 2018. He won reelection to California's new 9th congressional district, created through the 2020 redistricting process, which includes the majority of San Joaquin County.

Early life and education

Harder was born in Turlock, California, and graduated from Modesto High School. He earned political science and economics undergraduate degrees from Stanford University and a joint MBA/MPP from Harvard Business School and Kennedy School of Government.

Private career

In 2014, Bessemer Venture Partners hired Harder in its New York office. He moved back to San Francisco and became a vice president of the company. In 2017, Harder left Bessemer to campaign full-time. He moved back to Turlock and taught business at Modesto Junior College.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2018

Main article: 2018 California's 10th congressional district election

In May 2017, Harder announced his candidacy, joining three other Democrats to challenge Republican Jeff Denham, who had represented the 10th district since 2013 and represented the 19th district from 2011 to 2013. As a result of California's top-two primary system, Denham and Harder advanced to the general election, with Denham taking 37.5% of the primary vote and Harder 16.7%.

California's 10th district was included on the list of Republican-held seats being targeted by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in 2018. On election night and for days after the election, Denham led in the reported results. On November 9, Harder pulled ahead as absentee ballots were counted. Days later, news outlets projected Harder's victory, and on November 14, Denham conceded.

2020

See also: 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in California § District 10

Harder ran for reelection in 2020, finishing first in the top-two open primary with 44% of the vote. He bested Republican opponents Ted Howze and Bob Elliott. Harder and Howze advanced to the general election on November 3, which Harder won with 55.2% of the vote to Howze's 44.8%. In 2020, former President Barack Obama endorsed Harder.

2022

See also: 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in California § District 9

Following redistricting, Harder defeated San Joaquin County Supervisor Tom Patti, a Republican, with 56% of the vote in California's 9th Congressional district.

Tenure

Harder has represented California's 10th congressional district since 2019.

After Trump supporters stormed the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, Harder received hate mail intended for Josh Hawley, a United States senator with a similar name who objected to certifying Joe Biden's electoral college victory.

As of September 2022, Harder had voted in line with President Joe Biden's stated position 100% of the time.

Committee assignments

For the 118th Congress:

• Committee on Appropriations
  • Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies

Caucus memberships

• New Democrat Coalition
• Problem Solvers Caucus

Political positions

Abortion

As of 2019, Harder had a 100% rating from NARAL Pro-Choice America for his abortion-related voting record. He opposed the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Delta Tunnels

In February 2023, Harder introduced a new bill called the Stop the Delta Tunnels Act, that would forbid the Secretary of Army from issuing a permit related to the project, effectively stopping all federal support for the Delta Conveyance Project. In May 2023, Harder criticized California Governor Newsom's plan to fast-track projects, including the Delta Tunnel project, which Harder had opposed for five years, citing that that project could negatively impact the ecosystem of the Delta in the San Joaquin Valley and affect fishery and agriculture industries.

Electoral history

California's 10th congressional district election, 2018
Primary election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jeff Denham (incumbent)	45,719	37.5
	Democratic	Josh Harder	20,742	17.0
	Republican	Ted D. Howze	17,723	14.6
	Democratic	Michael Eggman	12,446	10.2
	Democratic	Virginia Madueño	11,178	9.2
	Democratic	Sue Zwahlen	9,945	8.2
	Democratic	Michael J. "Mike" Barkley	2,904	2.4
	Democratic	Dotty Nygard (withdrawn)	1,100	0.9
Total votes			121,757	100.0
General election
	Democratic	Josh Harder	115,945	52.3
	Republican	Jeff Denham (incumbent)	105,955	47.7
Total votes			221,900	100.0
	Democratic gain from Republican

California's 10th congressional district election, 2020
Primary election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Josh Harder (incumbent)	69,668	44.1
	Republican	Ted Howze	53,574	33.9
	Republican	Bob Elliott	20,481	13.0
	Democratic	Michael J. "Mike" Barkley	5,561	3.5
	Republican	Marla Sousa Livengood	5,270	3.3
	Democratic	Ryan Blevins	3,536	2.2
Total votes			158,090	100.0
General election
	Democratic	Josh Harder (incumbent)	166,865	55.2
	Republican	Ted Howze	135,629	44.8
Total votes			302,494	100.0
	Democratic hold

California's 9th congressional district, 2022
Primary election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Josh Harder (incumbent)	39,026	36.7
	Republican	Tom Patti	30,843	29.0
	Republican	Jim Shoemaker	15,443	14.5
	Democratic	Harpreet Chima	8,433	7.9
	Republican	Jonathan Madison	5,992	5.6
	Democratic	Khalid Jafri	3,174	3.0
	Democratic	Karena Feng	2,632	2.5
	No party preference	Mark Andrews	758	0.7
Total votes			106,301	100.0
General election
	Democratic	Josh Harder (incumbent)	95,598	54.8
	Republican	Tom Patti	78,802	45.2
Total votes			174,400	100.0
	Democratic hold

Personal life

Harder and his wife Pamela met as undergraduate students at Stanford University. They were married at the Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Virginia in 2018.

Harder and his wife announced they had a baby girl on March 9, 2022.

External links

• Congressman Josh Harder official U.S. House website
• Josh Harder for Congress campaign website
• Appearances on C-SPAN

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Profile at Project Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at The Library of Congress

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Jeff Denham	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 10th congressional district 2019–2023	Succeeded by Mark DeSaulnier
Preceded by Jerry McNerney	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 9th congressional district 2023–present	Incumbent
United States order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by Michael Guest	United States representatives by seniority 254th	Succeeded by Jahana Hayes