Andrew Janz resets sights from Congress to Fresno Mayor

Andrew Janz during his 2018 Congressional campaign.

Politics is firmly in the blood of Andrew Janz, the Thai American who launched a serious challenge to one of Donald Trump's stanchest defenders in Congress.

Though he lost to incumbent Rep. Devin Nunes in the 2018 midterm elections, Janz did so much better than expected everyone -- his supporters and opponent -- thought he would try again in 2020.

Instead, the Fresno County violent crimes prosecutor has decided to run for Mayor of Fresno. “Time has shown that (incumbent Mayor Lee Brand) just doesn’t have what it takes to manage a city of this size. And I will admit, unlike him, I’m not a career politician,” Janz said in an interview with the Fresno Bee.

 “I’m not running for city manager. … The job of the mayor is to be the representative of the city – the person who speaks for and acts on behalf of the people that live here. And during my time running for Congress, I met thousands of people … and I know and I understand the needs of the people that live here.”

In response, Brand. a Republican, said, “I welcome the opportunity to have voters compare my well-earned experience and record of accomplishment, highlighted by creating over 5,000 good-paying jobs with benefits, to his complete lack of experience and a track record that consists of saying ‘I’m not Devin Nunes.’

Since his six-point loss to Nunes, Janz launched the Voter Protection Project to work nationwide combating voter suppression and targeting “bad actors” who are on the wrong side of the issue.

Janz's decision to run for mayor leaves the Democrats scrambling to find an opponent against the controversial and politically vulnerable Nunes.

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AAPI Vote 2018: Thai American candidate has Trump defender Devin Nunes running scared.

JANZ FOR CONGRESS

Democrat Andrew Janz, center, seeks to unseat incumbent Devin Nunes in California's Contressionals District 22.

EVEN THOUGH the polls show Rep. Devin Nunes ahead of his Democratic rival, Andrew Janz, the Republican lawmaker is running nervous.

For the first time, the eight-term conservative congressman representing a district dominated by Republicans, a rarity in blue-state California, he is facing an opponent who has even stanch Republicans questioning their political loyalties.

"He's made a decision he can pretty much do what he wants and ignore local concerns...if he just nationalizes this whole race," said Liz Mair, a Republican who runs the Swamp Accountability Project and is opposing Nunes as part of her organization's effort to protect Mueller's Russia investigation.

Recent polls suggest Nunes' lead has been considerably narrowed and show him ahead  by as little as five to eight points. His challenger, Thai-American Janz, has never before run for office but has raised more than $8 million, a staggering amount for a political newcomer in a heavily Republican district.

Still, Nunes holds a fund-raising edge thanks to large contributions from outside of California. While Janz is not receiving any financial help from the Democratic National Party, he has received only about 28 percent of his support from outside his state, according to Open Secrets, Nunes has received more than half of the $11.6 million he's raised from outside California.

In the days before the Nov. 6 Midterm Elections, the Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan newsletter that analyzes elections across the U.S., downgraded the Valley district from “solid” Republican to “likely” Republican, giving more of a chance to Janz, reports the Fresno Bee. The “likely” rating means the congressional race “has the potential to become engaged,” but is still not considered competitive.

“This Central Valley race has attracted more dollars than any other in the country, yet is still one of the least competitive,” the report said in new ratings released Tuesday (Oct. 30).

Nunes' controversial actions as chair of the House Intelligence Committee have generated harsh criticism that he is covering for the president and not conducting the panel's business in a bipartisan way.  

He has not held a public town hall in years and is rarely seen in District 22 between campaigns every two years. Critics say it's difficult to get a meeting with him and his local offices are closed most of the week. This campaign year, Nunes stages invitation-only events and prefers to run a campaign from afar, using a massive amount of TV advertising and websites geared to tell his stilted  version of the news.

California's District 22

Source: U.S. Censu

His hometown newspaper, the Fresno Bee, which had endorsed him in past years, endorsed Janz when Nunes refused to meet with the newspaper's editorial board. In retaliation, taking a cue from Trump's attacks on the "fake media," Nunes mailed out a 40-page booklet, which probably cost a hefty sum, attacking the newspaper.

Rather than run on local issues, such as fixing agreements between the state and federal governments over water allocations, Nunes has chosen to play up national issues such as his role defending Trump against allegations of Russian campaign interference and stoking fear with this year's GOP boogeyman -- immigrants.

While the district has voted Republican in the last few presidential races, Janz hopes the Democrat's Blue Wave -- spurred by the women's vote and young people -- materializes enough to overcome the historically conservative district.

"The Russia issue is relevant insofar as it takes away the political capital that he has now in Washington to focus on what people care about here," Janz told NPR. Janz says he's the one who can give local representation to the district. "I think that this race is about taking back the Central Valley."

SCREEN CAPTURE

A billboard in California's Congressional District 22, jabs at incumbent Devin Nunes'  attacks of the Mueller probe.

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AAPI Vote 2018: Devin Nunes' hometown newspaper endorses Thai American opponent

Former prosecutor Andrew Janz running against the odds.

FOR THE FIRST TIME in 16 years, The Fresno Bee is endorsing someone other than Republican incumbent Rep. Devin Nunes in the 22nd congressional district race. Instead, the Bee is endorsing first-time candidate Andrew Janz over the incumbent.
"Voters in the 22nd District ... can elect a representative who will both help them with their needs, listen to their concerns and invite them into the process, and chart a bipartisan course that the nation must find if it is to meet the challenges of the future. That leader is Andrew Janz," the paper's editorial board wrote about the former Deputy District Attorney.

"Voters can also choose Nunes and remain stuck with the damaging partisanship he practices, the party-above-country mode that motivates him to protect President Trump from the investigation into Russian meddling more than meet his constitutional obligations as an independent arm of government," the editorial continued. "Then there is his lack of regard for the needs of his part of California."

The Bee invited both candidates to interviews, but only Thai American Janz accepted. Relations between the newspaper and Nunes has been tense this campaign. The Republican has accused the newspaper of pushing a "leftist, liberal socialist." agenda. Last week, Nunes' campaign mailed out a 40-page pamphlet attacking the newspaper.

The newspaper points out that Nunes has not bothered to hold a town hall of public forum in years while Janz has been all over the district outworking Nunes, who prefers action in Washington. He has gained the reputation as one of Trump's most loyal defenders.

"Nunes," the Bee editorial points out, "voted along party lines in approving the House version of the American Health Care Act of 2017. It would have shrunk Medicaid by 15 million enrollees nationwide by 2026. Medicaid is the government program that covers low-income children, adults, seniors and people with disabilities, aiding one in five Americans. In Nunes’ district, 313,000 people were enrolled in Medi-Cal as of January. Of those, 74,000 would have immediately lost coverage, and all would have had their coverage impacted through loss of benefits or access to doctors. (Medi-Cal is California’s version of Medicaid)."

District 22 is in the heart of California's San Joaquin Valley's agricultural center and includes parts of Fresno and Sanger and Visalia.

The important endorsement comes a day after a poll taken in mid-September showed that among likely voters, Nunes led Janz 53 to 45 percentage points. That lead, apparently is large enough to make the Democratic Party spend its money in closer races. Janz is not getting any help from the party. Republicans also have an edge in voter registration.

The political website fivethirtyeight, gives Janz's chances to pull an upset at 1:40.

Janz has been able to raise a sizable campaign chest, over $7 million, on his own, the majority in small donations. Nevertheless, Nunes has more money for the home stretch. Most of his money came from outside the district.

“Look, I am not a career politician,” Janz said in a Sept. 5 interview with The Bee. “I am not a political pundit. All I can do is my best. All can do is go out there and talk to voters.”

Read the entire op-ed at The Fresno Bee.


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AAPI VOTE 2018: Thai American draws even with GOP's Devin Nunes

ANDREW JANZ

THE RACE for Devin Nunes' congressional seat in California has flipped. Once considered a "safe" seat for Republicans, is now up for grabs. The trend is good news for Thai/American challenger, Andrew Janz.

The race for California's Congressional District 22, smack dab in the middle of the conservative-leaning Central Valley and held by controversial GOP incumbent Nunes, has been downgraded from “safely Republican” to “likely Republican” by a closely watched political forecasting website.

Sabato’s Crystal Ball, run by University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, based their conclusion on the campaign war chest raised by Democratic challenger Andrew Janz as a trend indicator, thus making the race more competitive.

Janz is the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination to run against Nunes in November. The California primary is June 5.

Campaign filings show Janz has raised nearly $1.4 million in the last year, including $600,000 in the month of February alone. That surge  if donations can be attributed to Nunes, as chair of the House Intelligence Committee, releasing a GOP memo concluding that there had been no collusion between Russia and the Donald Trump presidential campaign.

Despite Nunes' role in releasing the memo, he still raised $2.6 million in the same amount of time, giving him over $4.5 million in cash on hand as of this month. He has also outspent Janz at $1.3 million to $783,000.

The difference is 47% of Nunes itemized donors live or operate outside of California, while 72% of Janz’s itemized donors were in-state

RELATED:

• Andrew Janz challenging Devin Nunes 
• Record number of AAPI candidates running in Midterms elections

The survey also showed that the majority of Nunes money came from political action committees (PACs) averaging $1,163 per donation.

Janz’s average donation was only $42. Even Janz's large donors - those who donated over $200 - averaged only $262. Therefore, one can safely surmise that that the Democrat has a broader populist appeal than Republican Nunes.

The University of Virginia poll predicts Democrats have a 50-50 chance to win enough seats to take control of the House.

CORRECTION: (May 2) Andrew Janz is Thai/American.

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Sunday Read: Asian American challenging Devin Nunes who made public the classified "memo"

JANZFORCONGRESS CAMPAIGN

Thai/American attorney Andrew Janz is hoping to upset Rep. Devin Nunes.

AN ASIAN AMERICAN is challenging Rep. Devin Nunes, the GOP congressman who sparked a firestorn by releasing a classified memo from the Senate Judicial Committee against the strong recommendations of the FBI.

Charging voters are “fed up” with Nunes, Fresno County Deputy District Attorney Andrew Janz declared his intention to run against Nunes in April 2017.

“Congressman Nunes has given me the best gift a first-time candidate with almost no name recognition can receive, he has made himself the poster boy for what’s wrong with Congress and put a national target on his back,” Janz said in a statement.

Since Nunes' classified memo was released on Friday (Feb. 2), the campaign for Janz has raised $130,379 and is just shy of 4,000 individual contributions.

Nunez' handling of the confidential memo put him at the center of the controversy which led the Sacramento Bee to call him "Trump's stooge" in an editorial last week.

Janz has made Nunes role in releasing the partisan memo against the FBI's strong protestations into one of the major talking points of his underdog campaign.

"I'm not a politician; I've never considered running for Congress until recently," Janz told The Fresno Bee in April of last year when he first declared his candidacy. He said that previous ethics concerns stemming from Nunes's handling of classified information related to the Russia probe spurred him to run.

"I deal with confidential information on a daily basis," Janz said. "I'm in a profession that's all about ethics." Janz's work as a Deputy D.A. gives him a strong law-and-order background that plays well in California's Central Valley.

Janz is definitely fighting an uphill battle but Democrats have targeted the district as one they could flip. The 22nd Congressional District is one of the few California districts where the GOP with 42.8 percent of voters identifying as Republicans have an edge. Only 32.8 percent identify as Democrats, but a large percentage, more than 19, who have indicated no party preference could bolster Janz's efforts, according to the Fresno Bee.

Janz is the son of immigrants — his mother from Thailand and his father from Northern Canada — who met in the Peace Corps, and English is his second language. Janz grew up in Fresno where his father worked as a laborer and his mother worked in a hospital.

He said Nunes, who enjoys being in the national spotlight, has been out of touch with voters in a in impoverished  agricultural-based district that’s home to a large immigrant community — both Latino and Asian. 

District residents scheduled their own town hall meeting recently because Nunes would not meet with them to address the region’s concerns, including GOP efforts to roll back the Affordable Care Act. Nunes failed to show, “and he didn’t even send a staffer,’’ Janz said. “He’s dismissed people as paid activists … but these are hard working people of the district. They’re not paid agitators.”

Two (left and below) of the 
billboards against Devin Nunes 
paid for by Andrew Janz's 
campaign.

As of January 22, 2018, a total of eight candidates have declared their intention to challenge Nunes for the seat, including six Democrats, one Libertarian, and one member of the American Solidarity Party. The overall race rating for this seat from three separate media outlets was Safe Republican, but that was before the memo controversy.

A Public Policy Polling survey conducted in January 2018 on behalf of the Janz campaign of attorney found Nunes leading a generic Democratic candidate 50-45. The November Midterms will pit the two top vote-getters in the June Primary against each other, regardless of party affiliation.

“The notion that Devin Nunes is unbeatable is a myth,’’ Janz said in an interview. “He’s been more concerned about defending himself regarding allegations of misusing classified information than he is with the concerns of the voters here — water, health care and crime. He’s not talking about these things.”

Janz added, "I think with this being a potential wave election, we're going to be able to usher in a new generation of leadership in Washington, and I hope to be a part of that."

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