James Varni Panetta (/pəˈnɛtə/pə-NEH-tə; born October 1, 1969) is an American lawyer, politician, and former Navy intelligence officer from thestate ofCalifornia. A member of theDemocratic Party, he is theU.S. representative forCalifornia's 19th congressional district. Formerly his district was numbered the20th congressional district. His current district includes southeastSan Jose and much of California'sCentral Coast, includingMonterey,Santa Cruz,Carmel-by-the-Sea, andPaso Robles to the south.^[1] Panetta was first elected in 2016, after working as a deputy district attorney forMonterey County. He is the son of formerSecretary of DefenseLeon Panetta, and holds the same congressional seat his father once held.

Jimmy Panetta
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromCalifornia
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2017
Preceded by	Sam Farr
Constituency	20th district (2017–2023) 19th district (2023–present)
Personal details
Born	James Varni Panetta (1969-10-01)October 1, 1969 (age 55) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Carrie McIntyre
Children	2
Relatives	Leon Panetta (father)
Education	Monterey Peninsula College University of California, Davis (BA) Santa Clara University (JD)
Signature
Website	House website
Military service
Branch/service	United States Navy Navy Reserve
Years of service	2003–2011
Battles/wars	War in Afghanistan
Awards	Bronze Star
Jimmy Panetta's voice Jimmy Panetta speaks on theDay of Silence Recorded April 21, 2021

Panetta graduated fromCarmel High School inCarmel, California.^[2] He then attendedMonterey Peninsula College and theUniversity of California, Davis, graduating with a bachelor's degree in international relations. He then interned at theUnited States Department of State. Panetta received hisJ.D. degree fromSanta Clara University School of Law. He joined theUnited States Navy Reserve as an intelligence officer and completed atour of duty in theWar in Afghanistan in 2007 while attached toJoint Special Operations Command, for which he was awarded theBronze Star.^[3][4] Panetta worked in theAlameda County, California, prosecutor's office and as a deputy district attorney for the District Attorney's office ofMonterey County, California.^[5]

After incumbent U.S. RepresentativeSam Farr announced in November 2015 that he would not seek reelection, Panetta announced his candidacy to succeed Farr in the 2016 election.^[5][6] His father had represented the district from 1977 to 1993.

Panetta defeated Republican Casey Lucius in the November general election.^[7] Democrats, in the persons of the Panettas and Farr, have held the seat and its predecessors without interruption since 1977. It is one of California's most Democratic districts outsideLos Angeles and theBay Area; Republicans have only garnered as much as 40% of the vote twice since 1977.

Panetta was reelected, defeating an independent challenger with 81.4% of the vote.^[8][9]

Panetta was reelected to a third term, defeating Republican challenger Jeff Gorman, a financial adviser,^[10] with 76.8% of the vote.^[11][12]

Panetta was sworn into office on January 3, 2017.^{[13][failed verification]} House Democrats selected him to be a regional whip forNorthern California, theCentral Coast,Hawaii and the U.S.Pacific Islands.^[14]

Twice, in 2018 and in 2019, Panetta introduced a bill commonly stylized as theKITTEN Act, a legislative proposal to curtail certain types of animal testing.^[15][16]

As of October 2021, Panetta had voted in line withJoe Biden's stated position 100% of the time.^[17]

In February 2023, during theRusso-Ukrainian War, Panetta signed a letter advocating for President Biden to giveF-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.^[18]

During May 2024, Panetta joined a bipartisan House delegation that traveled to Taiwan to signal support for the newly electedpro-Taiwanese independencegovernment in the aftermath of Chinese military exercises that simulated a blockade of Taiwan.^[19]

For the118th Congress:^[20]

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations
  • Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces
• Committee on the Budget
• Committee on Ways and Means
  • Subcommittee on Trade

• Congressional Arts Caucus^[21]
• Climate Solutions Caucus^[22]
• Rare Disease Caucus^[23]
• Work for Warriors Caucus^[24]
• Congressional Progressive Caucus^[25]
• For Country Caucus, Founder and Former Co-Chair^[26]
• New Democrat Coalition^[27]
• Medicare for All Caucus
• Problem Solvers Caucus^[28]

As of 2020, Panetta has a 100% rating fromNARAL Pro-Choice America and a F rating from theSusan B. Anthony List for his abortion-related voting history.^[29][30] He opposed theoverturning ofRoe v. Wade.^[31]

In 2022, Panetta was one of 16 Democrats to vote against the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act of 2022, an antitrust package that would crack down on corporations for anti-competitive behavior.^[32][33]

Panetta is the youngest of the three sons ofLeon Panetta, the formerUnited States Secretary of Defense.^[4] His wife, Carrie, is a judge on theMonterey County Superior Court. They have two daughters.^[34]

•  Ukraine
  • Honorary Diploma of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (2024) – Awarded by Ukrainian Parliament; presented byRuslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of theVerkhovna Rada.^[35][36]

• Congressman Jimmy Panetta official U.S. House website
• Jimmy Panetta for Congress campaign website
• Appearances onC-SPAN

• Biography at theBiographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Financial information (federal office) at theFederal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at theLibrary of Congress
• Profile atVote Smart