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California Legislature · Statewide General Election

State Senator, District 14

Draft candidate list — early preview until the state’s official list publishes on August 27, 2026.

This is one contest. Enter your address to see every race on your November ballot, and keep track of your picks.

On the ballot

This person holds your district's seat in the California State Senate (4-year term).

Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria led the June 2 primary with 45.8% and Republican Darin S. DuPont took 40.4% — a 5.4-point gap making this one of the closer Senate contests on the ballot. Soria currently represents Assembly District 27 and is seeking this Senate seat rather than re-election. The district covers Fresno, Merced and part of the central San Joaquin Valley.

The winner holds one of 40 State Senate seats for a four-year term, inside a 12-year lifetime cap on service in Sacramento. Senate districts are twice the size of Assembly districts, terms run twice as long, and the Senate confirms the Governor's appointments. A four-year term means the winner will not face voters again until 2030.

One candidate brings a legislative record made in the Assembly — a genuine basis for judgment, earned in a different chamber — and raised roughly sixteen times what her opponent did, yet finished under 46% in June. Weigh the record against that softness, and against a challenger who came within six points on a fraction of the money.

Esmeralda Soria

Democrat, currently the Assemblymember for District 27, seeking this Senate seat. She is lead author of 35 bills in the 2025–2026 session, 6 of them signed into law. She raised $1,701,839, among the largest legislative totals on this ballot.

Strengths

Six bills signed into law and $205,351 from individual donors, a substantial individual base alongside the institutional money.

Trade-offs

She took under 46% in June despite outspending her opponent roughly sixteen to one.

Keep in mind

Her record was made in the Assembly, not the Senate; the chambers differ in size, term and remit.

Darin S. DuPont

Republican, who advanced with 40.4% of the June vote. He raised $102,082, including $41,599 from PACs and committees and $28,550 from individuals. He has not served in the California Legislature or U.S. Congress.

Strengths

He came within 5.4 points of a sitting Assemblymember while raising about six cents for every dollar she did.

Trade-offs

That resource gap is wide going into the general, and he has no record in office to be judged on.

Keep in mind

Coverage surfaced little detail about his platform; what we can document is how close he came and how his campaign is funded, not what he would do in office.

Record in office

This seat is open — no candidate on the November ballot currently holds it. Esmeralda Soria (Democratic) is a sitting Assemblymember and is lead author of 35 bills in the 2025–2026 session, 7 of them signed into law. Darin S. DuPont has not served in the California Legislature or U.S. Congress; these records cover only those offices. Per the California Legislature's public bill data (leginfo bulk download), retrieved 2026-08-10.

Record details

Soria — AB 1923 (2026): Local ballot measures: County of Fresno. Soria — AB 1441 (2025): County of Merced Citizens Redistricting Commission. Soria — AB 639 (2025): Dams: exceptions. Committee assignments and the most recently signed-into-law bills each record-holder lead-authored, from the official legislative record.

Financial info

Darin S. DuPont

$102,082raised
  • Small donors$1,7462%
  • Individuals$28,55034%
  • PACs & committees$41,59949%
  • Businesses & other orgs$12,95015%

Esmeralda Soria

$1,701,839raised
  • Small donors$2,445<1%
  • Individuals$205,35112%
  • PACs & committees$813,62048%
  • Businesses & other orgs$665,30039%

Figures are CA Form 460 filings through June 30, 2026 by committees controlled by each candidate, and can include transfers from a candidate's earlier committees. Semi-annual reports covering January–June 2026 were due July 31, 2026, so some totals lag a period behind. Per the California Secretary of State's Cal-Access raw data export, retrieved 2026-08-22.

June 2 primary — how they advanced

Esmeralda Soria (Democratic)45.8% · 59,522 votes
Darin S. DuPont (Republican)40.4% · 52,440 votes
Esmeralda Hurtado (Democratic)13.8% · 17,946 votes
Source review: Very strong (97/100) · 4 cited sources

Official records anchor this contest, with multiple sources checked.

Last updated August 10, 2026.