Trevor Merrell
Trevor Merrell (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent California's 4th Congressional District. He will not appear on the ballot for the primary on June 2, 2026.
Merrell completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. Click here to read the survey answers.
2026 battleground election
Ballotpedia identified the June 2 top-two primary for California's 4th Congressional District as a battleground election. The summary below is from our coverage of this election, found here.
Two Democrats, six Republicans, and one independent candidate are running in the top-two primary for California's 4th Congressional District on June 2, 2026. As of March 2026, incumbent Mike Thompson (D) and Eric Jones (D) led in fundraising and local media attention.[1][2]
Local political observers describe the primary in terms of the ideological and generational contrast between Thompson and Jones. The San Francisco Chronicle's Joe Garofali described the primary as "another example of a younger, well-funded Bay Area Democrat taking on an entrenched candidate as the Democratic Party grapples with how to win back voters," referring to the party's losses at the national level in the 2024 elections.[2] The Sonoma Index-Tribune's Ruchi Shahagadkar said Thompson "has championed the region’s wine industry, fought for federal tax relief for wildfire survivors and served as the House Democrats’ point person on initiatives combating gun violence."[3] Politico's Jeremy B. White said Jones is "hoping to exploit a rapidly shifting media landscape that makes it easier for lesser-known candidates to break through, as Zohran Mamdani did in New York’s mayoral primary with viral campaign videos."[4]
Thompson was first elected to the House in 1998. He earlier served eight years in the California Senate. Thompson says he is running because "[w]ith the outcome of the last election and what’s happened since then with this (Donald Trump) administration and the Republican majority, it’s absolutely imperative that I continue the work I’ve started," referring to his position on the House Ways and Means Committee.[1] The Democratic Party of California endorsed Thompson.[5]
Jones is a former executive at an investment firm and the founder of the American Dream Institute, a group describing itself as "a first-of-its-kind digital engagement engine dedicated to helping the Democratic Party rebuild trust with young working Americans."[6] Jones says he is running "to restore the American Dream for every family — not just the wealthy few."[7] Our Revolution, an organization that advocates for the policies of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), endorsed Jones.[8]
Also running in the primary are Sharon Brown (R), Mandy Ghusar (R), Jimih Jones (R), L. John MacKenzie (R), Raymond Riehle (R), Chuck Uribe (R), and Thomas Roach (I).
In a top-two primary, all candidates running for a given office appear on the same ballot. The top two finishers—regardless of partisan affiliation—advance to the general election. One Democrat and one Republican have advanced from every top-two primary in the 4th District since 2016. Citing California State University, Sacramento, professor Wesley Hussey, The Sacramento Bee's Jake Goodrick said, "A Republican candidate often advances in a top-two primary, even in a heavily Democratic district...but without a stand-out Republican to back, a scenario in which the four Republicans split votes could favor both Thompson and Jones advancing."[9]
The primary is taking place in the context of redistricting in California that changed the 4th District's boundaries from those used in 2024. Inside Elections' Nathaniel Rakich said the 2026 version of the 4th District favors Democrats overall but does so by a narrower margin than the district lines in use in 2024.[10] As of March 2026, major election forecasters rated the general election Solid/Safe Democratic.
Elections
2026
See also: California's 4th Congressional District election, 2026
General election
The primary will occur on June 2, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for U.S. House California District 4
The following candidates are running in the primary for U.S. House California District 4 on June 2, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Mike Thompson (D) | |
 | Eric Jones (D) | |
| Sharon Brown (R) | ||
| Mandy Ghusar (R) | ||
| Jimih Jones (R) | ||
| L. John MacKenzie (R) | ||
 | Raymond Riehle (R) | |
Chuck Uribe (R)  | ||
 | Thomas Roach (No party preference) | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Trevor Merrell (D)
- Heath Fulkerson (R)
- John Wesley Tyler (No party preference)
Polls
- See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls
We provide results for polls that are included in polling aggregation from RealClearPolitics, when available. We will regularly check for polling aggregation for this race and add polls here once available. To notify us of polls available for this race, please email us.
Candidate spending
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Thompson | Democratic Party | $2,037,569 | $1,313,154 | $1,933,903 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Eric Jones | Democratic Party | $2,591,617 | $866,583 | $1,725,034 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Sharon Brown | Republican Party | $7,000 | $2,780 | $4,220 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Mandy Ghusar | Republican Party | $7,000 | $3,789 | $3,211 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Jimih Jones | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| L. John MacKenzie | Republican Party | $7,000 | $2,780 | $4,220 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Raymond Riehle | Republican Party | $90,180 | $75,019 | $15,701 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Chuck Uribe | Republican Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Thomas Roach | No party preference | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
|
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
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Satellite spending
- See also: Satellite spending
Satellite spending describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.[11][12][13]
If available, this section includes links to online resources tracking satellite spending in this election. To notify us of a resource to add, email us.
| By candidate | By election |
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Endorsements
Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. To send us an endorsement, click here.
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Trevor Merrell completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Merrell's responses.
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- Time is running out for us to protect our water, our workers, and our way of life from the effects of AI. In a district like ours, we need to act immediately. We will establish a national moratorium on these data centers to protect our communities from unparalleled job losses, the depletion of our natural resources, and the untold risks that AI poses to our culture and our children.
These massive complexes generate billions of dollars in profits for Silicon Valley billionaires and the politicians they have paid off. In exchange, they offer us tap water filled with toxic chemicals, power bills dramatically higher than the already-absurd ones we currently pay, and the rapid automation of our jobs.
I will refuse that offer on your behalf. - As both a former nursing assistant and a Case Manager for adults with disabilities, I have worked many long nights on hospital floors. I’ve watched our broken healthcare system reduce human beings to numbers on a balance sheet in the most vulnerable moments of their entire lives. We need to move to a single-payer system where patients and providers come first, not shareholders. I strongly support Medicare for All, including coverage for dental, hearing, vision, mental health, and in-home care. Our seniors deserve to retire in dignity, and in the company of the people they love. Lastly, I support a national mobilization to combat chronic disease by investing in preventative care and banning toxic chemicals from our food.
- I have lived here my entire life. I know the pain of fleeing your home in the middle of the night to escape a fire caused by PG&E. I know the fear that grips you when you step outside and smell smoke in the air. It is unacceptable to me that our current leaders have taken their bribes and allowed their executives to get away with paying fines and settlements instead of serving time behind bars. We need to criminally charge PG&E executives and bring their infrastructure into public ownership. I will also demand that the next governor of our state appoints members to the CPUC who will freeze utility rates and return them to pre-2020 levels.
If you elect me to Congress, I will fight to:
1. Ban Wall Street investors from buying up single-family homes.
2. Cap credit card interest rates at 10%.
3. Ban members of Congress and their families from trading stocks and crypto for life.
4. Repeal Citizens United and create a public campaign finance system.
5. Cap overdraft fees at $3.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Press Democrat, "Why rival Democrat Eric Jones thinks he can unseat Mike Thompson, North Bay's senior congressman," September 9, 2025
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The San Francisco Chronicle, "Another longtime Bay Area House member is getting an intraparty challenge," September 9, 2025
- ↑ The Sonoma Index-Tribune, "Sonoma Valley Democrats’ forum tonight for Thompson, his primary challengers," February 3, 2026
- ↑ Politico, "Dems unleash House primary challenges in war on gerontocracy," September 16, 2025
- ↑ Democratic Party of California, "2026 Primary Election Endorsements," February 22, 2026
- ↑ Yahoo Finance, "American Dream Institute Launches to Help Progressives Win Back Young Americans," August 22, 2025
- ↑ Eric Jones campaign website, "Home page," accessed March 9, 2026
- ↑ Facebook, "Our Revolution on February 23, 2026," accessed March 9, 2026
- ↑ The Sacramento Bee, "Worlds collide as wine-country Dems vie for conservative Yuba-Sutter voters," March 27, 2026
- ↑ Inside Elections, "A Detailed Analysis of California’s (Maybe) New Congressional Map," August 21, 2025
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Outside Spending," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Total Outside Spending by Election Cycle, All Groups," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ National Review.com, "Why the Media Hate Super PACs," December 12, 2021
