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Candidates › CA-40 race › 2025–2026
Esther Kim-Varet
DemocraticU.S. House, CA-40California
Has not served in Congress
- On the ballot
- Lost the open primaryJun 2, 2026 · 36,072 votes (16.6%) · 3 of 8 · Ken Calvert and Young Kim are on the November ballot
- Where to vote
- Find your polling place (opens in a new tab) · More ways to vote
- Top priorities
- Social Security and Seniors Issues
- Make Healthcare Affordable and Reduce Prescription Drug Costs
- Small Businesses
- Reduce Taxes on Working and Middle Class Families
- Veterans
- Money
- $3M raised, $2.9M spent, $26.3K cash on hand (through Sep 30, 2026). Where it comes from
- Who gives
- 47% of individual money from donors at $200 or less · 61% from California · largest committee giver ASPIRE PAC, $5K
- Outside groups
- $1.1M supporting, $3.2K opposing Kim-Varet
- Backed by
- ASPIRE · NRDC Action Fund · National Women's Political Caucus and 17 more. As the campaign lists them
12 priorities from estherkimvaret.com, in the order they are listed there. Every heading and the text under it is copied exactly, as one passage for each page it is from, and links to that place on the page; hover a source to see which passage it opens.
The notion that Social Security is too costly to continue is a myth. We need to uphold our promise to Americans that they will be provided for after retirement and continuing to pay out Social Security benefits is a question of values. The amount Americans receive from Social Security is modest and sustainable.
Women, minorities, Veterans, and individuals who are disabled would suffer the most if Social Security benefits are cut.
All Americans deserve to live in dignity after retirement and everyone with a disability needs security. Defending the current Social Security program is not enough to ensure the future financial stability of later generations and that is why I support expanding and protecting Social Security in a number of ways: Increase the cost-of-living adjustments to account for rising costs of housing, healthcare, and prescription drugs for elderly Americans, and remove the maximum taxable earnings cap of $184,500 so billionaires pay their fair share.
- Increase the contributions by large corporations that have enjoyed tax benefits at the expense of their low-wage and middle-wage employees.
- Ensure that all eligible recipients will get the Social Security benefits they were promised.
- Protect women who have employment gaps--because they left the workforce to raise families or take care of loved ones--from lower benefits.
- Lift seniors with low incomes out of poverty by increasing their benefits to a livable amount.
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
Healthcare is a human right, not a privilege. I have helped my community access lifesaving healthcare and medicine, and I understand the challenges families face in affording care.
I will take on the big insurance and pharmaceutical companies to rein in the high cost of healthcare and prescription drugs and stop efforts to cut Medicaid. Esther will continue to protect Medicare and Medicaid.
I have seen relatives struggle to afford healthcare and friends set up fundraising pages to cover medical expenses after a tragic accident to cover surgeries. No one should get sicker because they can’t afford to go to the doctor or go into debt to pay their hospital bills. No one should have to choose between paying for their prescription drugs or rent.
I am the only candidate in my race with a plan to make prescription drugs more affordable for seniors, working families, and individuals. In Congress, I will introduce legislation to end "Pay-to-Delay," the scam where Big Pharma pays off smaller drug companies to keep their generic brands off the market so they can keep price gouging us.
In Congress, I will push for Medicare - the nation's largest insurer - to negotiate all drug pricing. She will stop prescription drug price gouging and keep Big Pharma from using taxpayer dollars to fund their advertising campaigns, then writing it off on their corporate taxes.
No one should face bankruptcy to pay for life-saving medicine. It's time we took on Big Pharma's greed and the cost of medicine for every family.
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
We need to level the playing field for small businesses so they can grow and create jobs that will empower folks to save, afford to send their children to college, and retire. Small businesses are what built America and this district and they are under attack from a rapidly growing corporate presence in our country.
We need to do the following:
- Reduce the tax burden on small businesses and simplify small business tax filing.
- Repeal wasteful special interest subsidies that make it harder for entrepreneurs to raise capital, enter the market, and create jobs.
- Ensure that folks who dream of owning a successful business have the opportunity to do so.
- Guarantee that health insurance premiums do not force businesses to lay off employees.
- Benefits and legal protections for workers. Working-class folks should be able to earn a living wage and be able to save for life’s unexpected emergencies.
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
It is time that we value the hard earned dollars of everyday Americans over lining the pockets of the wealthy and corporations. We need to lower taxes for those who are already struggling to make ends meet, but more importantly we need to hold the ultra wealthy and corporations accountable for the taxes they owe. Better tax enforcement on the wealthy and oversight of corporate tax dodging would drastically reduce the deficit, allowing lower-income and middle-income Americans to pay less while still having the funds the government needs.
America has one of the widest income gaps in the world, and we can promote a closing of this gap through a corporate tax plan. Companies with a high annual revenue in the hundreds of millions and a large income gap between their CEOs and median workers should be taxed at a higher rate. This would raise millions in tax dollars and encourage these wealthy companies to increase worker wages to avoid a tax increase.
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
Supporting our veterans is a moral imperative. We must make sure that our veterans and their families receive necessary resources.
According to Veterans Affairs (VA) internal data from October 2019 to June 2020, Veterans waited an average of 42 days for an appointment in the community, starting from the time they requested the appointment to the time of meeting. This is unacceptable.
I will always be a champion for Veterans and military families, by fighting to:
- Expand access to mental health and addiction care.
- Ensure that all returning Veterans and active-duty military are screened for post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health and/or addiction challenges.
- Increase outreach to Veterans to connect them with services.
- Hire more mental health professionals within the VA and reduce the wait times for Veterans to get adequate mental health care.
- End Veteran homelessness by making sure that every Veteran has access to safe, supportive housing.
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
Institutionalized corruption in all three branches of our Federal government has put American Democracy at serious risk. We must recommit to the Constitution, root out corrupt actors, supersize the guardrails, restore public faith in government, reset the checks and balances, and make public service a privilege not a grift — and declare again that America has NO KINGS. Without transformative legislation and oversight to uphold our Constitutional Democracy and restore real representation to the people, America will continue drifting towards populist authoritarianism, in which case none of the other policies we want to achieve will be possible.
In Congress, I will fight to advance and pass the following legislation:
- H.Res. 939 — Impeaching Donald J. Trump for High Crimes and Misdemeanors
- The Freedom to Vote Act (FKA For the People Act)
- John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act
- The No Kings Act
- Ban Congressional Stock Trading Act (to include POTUS/VP/SCOTUS)
- No Corruption in Government Act
- Supreme Court Tenure Establishment and Retirement Modernization (TERM) Act
- Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act
- Judiciary Act of 2023 (to expand SCOTUS to 13 justices)
- U.S. Term Limits Amendment
- District of Columbia Statehood Bill (FKA The Washington, D.C. Admission Act)
- Reclaim Trade Powers Act
- Repeal of the 1991, 2001, and 2002 Authorizations for the Use of Military Force
- Legislation to reverse the harmful SCOTUS “Citizens United” ruling
- Uncapping the House of Representatives
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
When a large majority of American families and seniors are able to comfortably sustain middle class prosperity our nation will be stronger and wealthier for all. Let’s build from the middle class out and bring as many people as possible in. We must reaffirm the American Dream as an American Promise. As a small business owner, I’ve had sleepless nights worrying about employee payroll and rising expenses, just to keep my business open. I’ll work to lower costs for middle class families, make taxes fair, protect seniors, and ensure that quality healthcare is affordable.
In Congress I will fight to advance and pass the following legislation:
- Repeal of The One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025
- Raise the Wage Act, with amendment to provide related tax credits to SMBs
- Promoting Affordable Childcare for Everyone (PACE) Act
- Medicare for All Act
- State-Based Universal Health Care Act
- Carried Interest Fairness Act
- Investing in All of America Act
- LIONS Loans In Our Neighborhoods Act
- Restructure property tax deduction to limit double taxation to 10% of taxable income
- Reverse subsidies for purchasers of residential real estate units owned as investments
- Guaranteed Income Pilot Program Act
Even $20 an hour is not a living wage and is not enough to secure housing, especially not in most parts of California. According to the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, people need to earn $40.23 an hour to rent a one-bedroom apartment, and $49.61 an hour to cover a two-bedroom apartment in Orange County. Affordable housing has become much harder to find in our district. We need to make sure that wages increase for families, and we need to ensure that there are enough affordable housing options in our district.
I will fight for paid family and medical leave for all employees, because no one should be choosing between a job and supporting their family. I also recognize the need for fair and predictable scheduling to protect workers, which should be protected by legislation.
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
America is a nation of immigrants. Immigration has always been our superpower, the core source of our cultural and economic achievements, and the backbone of our history. Through misguided past policies and misplaced fears of labor displacement we have both lost control of our borders and lost our will to attract and integrate the world’s best and brightest. We must fix both and once again embrace immigration as the cornerstone of America’s purpose and prosperity. In order to achieve this, we will need to accept that the undocumented immigrants already living in the US, and their children, cannot and should not be removed other than for legitimate criminal justice or immigration law violation convictions. We must provide a clear and efficient path to amnesty and citizenship for the productive undocumented immigrants already established here and fully fund our federal government to increase the number of immigration judges, consular officers, naturalization officers, and fix the broken fee-for-service model.
In Congress I will fight to advance and pass the following legislation:
- Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act (DREAM) Act or The American Dream and Promise Act
- The Dignity Act
- The Immigration Visa Efficiency and Security Act
- The U.S. Citizenship Act
- Renewing Immigration Provisions of the Immigration Act of 1929
- Combating Law Enforcement Anonymity by Requiring Identification Disclosure (CLEAR ID) Act
- Stop ICE from Kidnapping US Citizens Act
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
Nearly half of CA-40 consists of the Cleveland National Forest. Pollution and climate change threaten not only our national forests, but our health, our homes, and our quality of life. My husband Joseph and I have been personally supportive of conservation and climate nonprofits for over a decade, including traveling to DC to lobby Members of Congress as a volunteer. In Congress, I’ll continue to demand responsible science-based solutions that keep America competitive and Americans protected.
In Congress I will fight to advance, revive, and pass the following legislation:
- Polluters Pay Climate Fund Act
- End Oil and Gas Tax Subsidies Act
- End Polluter Welfare Act
- Clean Electricity and Transmission Acceleration Act
- Wildfire Smoke Relief Act
- Saving Natural Ecosystems and Marine Organisms (NEMO) Act
- Fighting Foreign Illegal Seafood Harvests (FISH) Act
- Repeal of Trump Administration executive orders and restoration of the full scope of the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, the Environmental Protection Agency, NOAA, and other climate and environmental protection federal agencies
- Restoring the federal lands and water that Trump illegally gave away to mining and other private interests
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
All children deserve teachers like those I was lucky to have. America needs to prioritize rigor, innovation and affordability in education for children and adults alike, including training and compensation of teachers — this is the best investment that we as a nation can make.
In Congress I will fight to advance and pass the following legislation:
- Enhance Access to SNAP (EATS) Act
- American Teacher Act (establish $60,000 as nationwide minimum teacher salary)
- Supporting America’s Young Entrepreneurs Act
- Generating Relief for Academic Debt Using Assisted Tax Efficiency (GRADUATE) Act
- Rebuild America's Schools Act of 2026
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
Every woman in every state should have safe access to abortion, contraception, and IVF. I had abortions at 21 and 41, and when people ask me why, I tell them it's none of their business. I believe these decisions should be between a woman and her doctor, and nobody else.
In Congress I will fight to advance and pass the following legislation:
- Right to Contraception Act
- Women’s Health Protection Act
- Ensuring Access to Abortion Act
- Right to IVF Act
- Joint resolution to remove the deadline for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment
- Equality Act
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities
Our children deserve to grow up safe and free from the threat of gun violence. For too long, politicians have failed to act, allowing the NRA and the gun lobby to block even the most basic safety measures. I believe in responsible gun ownership — but automatic weapons have no place in civilian hands. Just as we regulate cars to protect public safety, we must do the same with firearms.
In Congress I will fight to advance and pass the following legislation:
- Assault Weapons Ban
- Universal Background Checks Act
- Ethan’s Law (safe storage requirements)
- Federal Red Flag Law
- Repeal of the NRA’s tax-exempt status
- Funding for gun violence prevention research
source ↗ (opens the page at this passage) · estherkimvaret.com/priorities