The 19th Congressional District race has an incumbent, a challenger and a very wide money gap. Democratic Rep. Jimmy Panetta ("United States Representative") faces Republican Peter Coe Verbica ("Business Owner") on Nov. 3, according to the Secretary of State's certified list.

The primary

Seven candidates ran on June 2. Panetta finished first with 58.4% (127,294 votes) and Verbica second with 20.5% (44,590), according to Ballotpedia. NBC News/AP results show the same split. Democrat Sean Dougherty was third with 11.5%.

The money

Campaign finance figures through Oct. 14, as compiled by Ballotpedia from federal filings:

  • Panetta: $3,622,737 raised, $1,870,173 spent, $5,467,202 cash on hand.
  • Verbica: $85,541 raised, $78,720 spent, $6,821 cash on hand.

Ballotpedia also lists about $599,548 in satellite spending supporting Panetta, almost all of it from a group called THINK BIG.

Who Verbica is

According to the biography he submitted to Ballotpedia, Verbica was born in San Jose. He holds a bachelor's degree and a law degree from Santa Clara University and a master's from MIT. He is a managing director and Certified Financial Planner at Silicon Private Wealth and has taught economics as an adjunct at San Jose State. Bay Area voters may remember him from 2022, when he won a top-two slot in the Board of Equalization District 2 primary.

Panetta last time

In 2024 Panetta beat Republican Jason Anderson with 69.3% of the vote, according to Ballotpedia.

How to vote

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. Polls and vote centers close at 8 p.m., and mailed ballots must be postmarked by Election Day and arrive within seven days. You can check your registration and ballot status at sos.ca.gov/elections. California lets you register and vote the same day at a vote center.

More races and measures: our 2026 election hub.