California's 52nd Congressional District election, 2016
The52nd Congressional District of California held an election for theU.S. House of Representatives onNovember 8, 2016.
Heading into the election, Ballotpediarated this race as safely Democratic. IncumbentScott Peters (D) defeatedDenise Gitsham (R) in the general election on November 8, 2016. Peters and Gitsham defeatedTerry Reagan Allvord (R),Jacquie Atkinson (R),Kenneth Canada (R), andJohn Horst (R) in thetop-two primary on June 7, 2016.[4][5]
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Primary: California uses atop-two primary system, in which all candidates appear on the same ballot. The top two vote-getters, regardless of party affiliation, move on to the general election. In states that do not use a top-two system, all parties are usually able to put forward a candidate for the general election if they choose to.[6][7]
Unlike the top-two format used in some states (Louisiana and Georgia special elections for example), a general election between the top-two candidates in California occurs regardless of whether the top candidate received 50% of the vote in the first round of elections.
As of October 2025, California was one of five states to use a top-two primary system, or a variation of the top-two system for some or all statewide primaries.See here for more information.
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, seethis article.
Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent wasScott Peters (D), who was first elected in 2012.
As of the2010 redistricting cycle,California's 52nd Congressional District was located in the southern portion of thestate and included part of San Diego County.[8]
Election results
General election
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Scott PetersIncumbent | 56.5% | 181,253 | |
| Republican | Denise Gitsham | 43.5% | 139,403 | |
| Total Votes | 320,656 | |||
| Source:California Secretary of State | ||||
Primary election
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Scott PetersIncumbent | 58.9% | 108,020 | |
| Republican | Denise Gitsham | 16.2% | 29,658 | |
| Republican | Jacquie Atkinson | 13% | 23,927 | |
| Republican | Kenneth Canada | 4.5% | 8,268 | |
| Republican | Terry Allvord | 4.5% | 8,194 | |
| Republican | John Horst | 3% | 5,435 | |
| Total Votes | 183,502 | |||
| Source:California Secretary of State | ||||
Candidates
General election candidates:  Scott Peters a Denise Gitsham |
Primary candidates: Scott Peters - Incumbent[4]aTerry Reagan Allvord[4]Jacquie Atkinson[9]Kenneth Canada[4]Denise Gitsham - Former Bush aide[10]aJohn Horst[11] |
Race background
IncumbentScott Peters was one of the initial 14 members of theDemocratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Frontline Program. The program was designed to help protect vulnerable Democratic incumbents heading into the 2016 election.[12]
Denise Gitsham was a member of theNRCC's Young Guns Program in 2016. The Young Guns program "supports and mentors challenger and open-seat candidates in races across the country."[13]
Endorsements
Scott Peters
- San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce - "Congressman Peters has demonstrated that his priorities are in alignment with the chamber’s and he has a proven track record of working to create an environment for business to succeed. His election ensures San Diego gets the leadership it deserves to stay competitive."[14]
- U.S. Chamber of Commerce - "We need more pragmatic and commonsense leaders like Scott Peters. Peters is focused on getting things done for the 52nd District, not scoring political points."[15]
Media
Scott Peters
Opposition
American Action Network released $100,000 ad buys targeting incumbentScott Peters (D) among others. The ad attacks Peters for supporting theIran nuclear deal.[16]
Denise Gitsham
District history
2014
IncumbentScott Peters won re-election to California's 52nd Congressional District in 2014. The race was abattleground district in 2014 due to the low margin of victory for Democrats in the last election and last two presidential elections. IncumbentScott Peters (D) andCarl DeMaio triumphed in theblanket primary overKirk Jorgensen (R) andFred Simon (R). The general election race between Peters and DeMaio remained too close to call for several days after the election. TheAssociated Press called the race for Peters late on November 7, 2014, but DeMaio did not concede the race until November 9, 2014, due to the fact that there were still between 10,000 to 15,000 ballots left to be counted.[17][18]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Scott PetersIncumbent | 51.6% | 98,826 | |
| Republican | Carl DeMaio | 48.4% | 92,746 | |
| Total Votes | 191,572 | |||
| Source:California Secretary of State | ||||
2012
The 51st Congressional District of California held an election for theU.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012. DemocratScott Peters won election in the district.[19]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Scott Peters | 51.2% | 151,451 | |
| Republican | Brian BilbrayIncumbent | 48.8% | 144,459 | |
| Total Votes | 295,910 | |||
| Source:California Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election" | ||||
Important dates and deadlines
- See also:California elections, 2016
The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in California in 2016.
| Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Deadline | Event type | Event description | |
| February 1, 2016 | Campaign finance | Semi-annual report due | |
| February 25, 2016 | Ballot access | Close of signature in lieu of filing fee period for voter-nominated offices | |
| March 11, 2016 | Ballot access | Close of declaration of candidacy and nomination paper period for voter-nominated offices | |
| April 28, 2016 | Campaign finance | Pre-election report due | |
| May 26, 2016 | Campaign finance | Pre-election report due | |
| August 1, 2016 | Campaign finance | Semi-annual report due | |
| June 7, 2016 | Election date | Primary election | |
| November 8, 2016 | Election date | General election | |
| Sources:California Secretary of State, "Key Dates and Deadlines," accessed January 11, 2016 California Fair Political Practices Commission, "Filing Schedule for State Candidate Controlled Committees Listed on the June 7, 2016 Ballot," accessed January 11, 2016 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in California, 2016
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2016
Footnotes
- ↑Cook Political Report, "2016 House Race Ratings," accessed November 6, 2016
- ↑Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2016 House," accessed November 6, 2016
- ↑Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report, "House Ratings," accessed November 6, 2016
- ↑4.04.14.24.3California Secretary of State, "Certified List of Candidates for Voter-Nominated Offices June 7, 2016, Presidential Primary Election," accessed April 4, 2016
- ↑The New York Times, "California Primary Results," June 7, 2016
- ↑California Legislative Information, "California Constitution, Article II, Section 5," accessed October 29, 2025
- ↑California Secretary of State, "Primary Elections in California," accessed October 29, 2025
- ↑California Redistricting Map, "Map," accessed September 25, 2012
- ↑Daily KOS, "Daily Kos Elections Morning Digest: Chris McDaniel prepares to go to war with another GOP incumbent," February 27, 2015
- ↑Times of San Diego, "Former Bush Aide to Challenge Rep. Peters for Congress," November 5, 2015
- ↑John Horst for Congress, "Home," accessed March 8, 2016
- ↑Roll Call, "Exclusive: DCCC Announces 14 Incumbents in Frontline Program," February 12, 2015
- ↑NRCC, "32 Congressional Candidates Announced “On the Radar” as Part of NRCC’s Young Guns Program," November 19, 2015
- ↑Times of San Diego, "Scott Peters Picks Up Early Endorsement from Chamber," August 27, 2015
- ↑Times of San Diego, "For a Second Time, U.S. Chamber Endorses Democrat Scott Peters," October 5, 2016
- ↑Politico, "GOP group targets Dems on Iran," September 9, 2015
- ↑UT San Diego, "Peters on the verge of victory," November 7, 2014
- ↑Politico, "Rep. Scott Peters beats Carl DeMaio for San Diego seat," November 7. 2014
- ↑Politico, "2012 Election Map, California," accessed August 15, 2012
For information about public policy issues in the 2016 elections, see:Public policy in the 2016 elections!
